{"id":105680,"date":"2021-03-12T14:24:31","date_gmt":"2021-03-12T18:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/?p=105680"},"modified":"2022-10-28T18:52:39","modified_gmt":"2022-10-28T22:52:39","slug":"a-tool-to-measure-cartilage-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/2021\/03\/12\/a-tool-to-measure-cartilage-health\/","title":{"rendered":"A Tool to Measure Cartilage Health"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"MSE
Professor Michael Albro (MSE, BME) won the MSE Innovation Grant and invented a tool to help patients with arthritis.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Emily Sorkin<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cImagine trying to develop a drug to lower cholesterol levels without a technique to measure<\/span> cholesterol levels,\u201d says Michael Albro. \u201cIn many respects, this is where we are with arthritis.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n

But that is changing. Scientists will be soon be able to measure the results of different treatments, develop early stage diagnostics, and\u2014most importantly\u2014improve healthcare outcomes for patients with osteoarthritis.<\/p>\n

\"MSE
In this picture, surgeons are using Albro’s tool as part of a larger invasive operation. If the tool was used on its own, the operation would be minimally invasive.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Professor\u00a0<\/span>Michael Albro<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(ME, MSE, BME) has successfully developed technology that can assess cartilage health and detect early signs of degeneration: the Raman arthroscope. The tool uses light technology and is inserted into a patient\u2019s joint with a hypodermic needle. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe project is accelerating rapidly,\u201d explains Albro. While testing the tool in ex vivo models, the team found unprecedented accuracy in its ability to detect degeneration. Future tests involve animal testing; and eventually, clinical trials.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe \u2018magical\u2019 drug to stop arthritis may already exist\u2014we just need a way to identify it,\u201d says Albro. \u201cThis technology can make that happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

MSE Innovation Grant<\/h4>\n

Osteoarthritis is a debilitating condition that occurs when the protective cartilage covering at the ends of bones gradually wears away. Around 25% of American adults have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis, and hundreds of billions are spent on healthcare for osteoarthritis annually.<\/p>\n

Albro\u2019s winning<\/a> proposal offered a creative and remarkable solution<\/span>\u00a0to a critical healthcare problem. It was a high risk and high reward idea, and Albro recalls feeling \u201cabsolutely elated\u201d to have received the award in early 2020. \u201cIt is a wonderful feeling to have your research ideas validated by your peer community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe funds enabled us to further develop the Raman platform to increase outputs and accuracy [and to start recruiting] new PhD students for the project,\u201d Albro said. \u201cI greatly appreciate the diverse academic backgrounds of the MSE student body. [They] facilitate the dynamic, collaborative laboratory environment necessary to tackle complex, interdisciplinary research projects.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Interdisciplinary Team<\/h4>\n

\u201c[This project] is a challenging pursuit that truly requires a team with a wide range of expertise,\u201d says Albro.<\/p>\n

Leading the project with Albro are Professor<\/a> Mads Bergholt<\/a>, an expert in Raman endoscopes for cancer diagnostics at King\u2019s College London, and Dr.<\/a> Brian Snyder<\/a>, a renowned orthopedic surgeon at Boston Children\u2019s Hospital. Juncheng (Andy) Zhang and a group of students based in the Growth Factor Mechanobiology Lab<\/a>\u00a0have offered key contributions to the team.\u00a0Andy is a BME undergraduate student who has made a variety of contributions to the research, from device development and software programming to cartilage diagnostics and biochemical assays.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been quite an impressive undertaking for any student, let alone an undergraduate,\u201d says Albro. \u201cAndy deserves much credit for the progress we have made over the course of the last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a result of his experience in the lab, Andy has been inspired to pursue a PhD degree. \u201cWorking in the Albro Lab is one of the most important experiences in my life,\u201d says Andy. \u201c[I] learned about the beauty and the excitement of real research. [Professor Albro] is always passionate about his research, and this drives me to try my best all the time!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Albro\u2019s lab temporarily closed in Spring 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed operations in August 2020. \u201cDespite the challenging circumstances involved in adhering to COVID safety protocols, the terrific students in my lab have found a way to maintain research productivity,\u201d reflects Albro.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Professor\u00a0Michael Albro\u00a0(ME, MSE, BME) has successfully developed technology that can assess cartilage health and detect early signs of degeneration: the Raman arthroscope. The tool uses light technology and is inserted into a patient\u2019s joint with a hypodermic needle.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It is a \u201cgame changer” for patients with osteoarthritis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8588,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[236,899,541,522,255,909,252,908,245],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105680"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8588"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":128413,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105680\/revisions\/128413"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}