Biological sex plays a role in meniscus injury and regeneration: females experience more tears and worse repair outcomes. As a first year graduate student in the Robinson Lab, Janie Johnson is studying the intersection between hormonal and mechanobiological signaling pathways to understand how sex differences arise in primary meniscus cells. Using biomaterials and mechanobiology tools to mimic the anisotropy and mechanical loading of the meniscus, Janie will explore sex differences in the estrogen receptor alpha response to strain with the eventual goal of addressing sex-biased outcomes in injury and regeneration.
