Dr. Alexander holds an appointment in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. He is interested in the pathogenesis of skeletal tissue injury and degeneration and cell and material-based repair of these same tissues. Dr. Alexander explores cell-based mechanisms of these with a focus on the stem cell either as a participant or mediator of regenerative processes. He employ a range of techniques from in vitro systems to animal models. In the last 5 years, his team has been :
- Developing in vivo models to study mechanisms of heterotopic ossification following blast trauma and osteomyelitis;
- Testing scaffolds and drug/gene delivery systems for cartilage, tendon, meniscus and nerve repair; and
- Custom-designing bioreactors to model cell specific cell and tissue interactions that may be used to:
- Study musculoskeletal development and disease,
- Serve as bioreactors for fabrication of cell-based mature, functional tissue-engineered implants
- Test drug efficacy and environmental toxicity.
These include multi-tissue models to study embryonic limb development, chronic inflammation and OA, metastatic bone disease, among others.
I thoroughly enjoy the interdisciplinary nature of the research and environment here at the University of Pittsburgh.
- PhD, Developmental Biology and Teratology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA
- Postdoctoral training, Cartilage Section, NIAMS, NIH, Bethesda, MD
- Research Fellowship, Osteoarthritis Section, NIAMS, NIH, Bethesda, MD