Jaqueline Lourdes Rios

Universitair Medisch Centrum Utrecht, Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht

Dr. Jaqueline Lourdes Rios graduated in Physical Therapy in 2007 and received her MSc in Human Movement Science in 2013 (Santa Catarina State University, Brazil). In 2019 she obtained her PhD for studies conducted on the metabolic osteoarthritis phenotype, and the contributions of exercise and prebiotic dietary fiber pre- and post- osteoarthritis development at the University of Calgary. In 2018 she was awarded the David Winter Doctoral Young Investigator Award (Canadian Society for Biomechanics, Halifax, NS, Canada), and in 2019 the J.B. Hyne Research Innovation Award (University of Calgary, AB, Canada) for the research conducted during her PhD. Dr. Rios is a trained scientist with experience in clinical and pre-clinical research, and she is interested in understanding the different disease pathways in osteoarthritis, with the ultimate goal of finding ways to prevent and treat osteoarthritis. Currently, she is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht at Universitair Medisch Centrum Utrecht, studying post-traumatic and metabolic osteoarthritis phenotypes and slow drug release. In addition to her research, Dr. Rios is committed to inspiring young people, especially girls. She often participates and organizes programs to provide 13-15-year-old students with a positive hands-on experience in STEM workplaces.

Melina Bellini

Western University, Canada, Physiology and Pharmacology (Musculoskeletal Health Research)

Dr. Melina Bellini holds a Master’s degree in Oral Biochemistry (2013) from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, where she used proteomics to characterize fundamental proteins on the tooth surface that play a role in dental structure, as well as biomarkers of oral and systemic diseases.   In 2020 she received her PhD in Physiology and Pharmacology (Musculoskeletal Health Research). Her doctoral research investigated the role of molecular pathways in joint health and osteoarthritis. Using a genetically modified mouse to evaluate the gene action in OA, her thesis focused on a gene called mitogen-inducible gene 6 (Mig-6) in the knee joint. She employed molecular and histological examination, microCT imaging, and behavioural assays to assess the initiation and progression of osteoarthritis. Her work showed that high levels of Mig-6 in cartilage accelerates OA during aging and after injury, and she concluded that Mig-6 and its pathways play an essential role in cartilage development, and presents a novel target for treating OA. Dr. Bellini is a passionate life-long learner dedicated to improving the lives of others, with a focus on the arthritis field. She has been exceptionally well trained in basic research with a proven record of scholarly articles, presentation, and effective communication in the publication of ten articles, and has presented in more than five referred and non-referred conferences and seminars.  In addition to her research, Dr. Bellini works to bridge the gap between science and industry to build a stronger health sciences sector in Canada by participating in and coordinating career development events that bring meaningful experience, innovative thinking, and entrepreneurism for young scientists as well as other graduate-level trainees.

Tengfei He

Northeastern University

Dr. Tengfei He received his PhD in the College of Engineering (2022) from Northeastern University. His doctoral research mainly focused on targeted drug delivery to cartilage for treating osteoarthritis (OA), as local intra-articular (IA) injections of drugs suffer from rapid clearance from the joint space and slow diffusive transport through the dense, avascular cartilage matrix comprised of negatively charged glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). With the goal of using electrostatic interaction for targeted drug delivery, Dr. He synthesized a branched structure by conjugating four 8-arm PEGs to its biotin binding sites while ensuring that its net size remains within the pore size limit of cartilage. This multi-arm Avidin nano-construct or mAv contains 28 sites for covalent conjugation of small-sized drugs. With the test in vitro (cartilage explant model) and in vivo (IA injection in rat), mAv offered itself as a promising charge-based platform for delivering a wide range of small-sized OA drugs for cartilage repair. In addition to his research, Dr. He is a reviewer for the recent research on OA disease and drug delivery for journals like ACS. As a guest editor of this collection, Dr.he wants to help researchers find and establish a good pre-clinical model of OA to enhance the chance of successful clinical translation.