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Meet Our Students

Students in musculoskeletal health sciences train in a collaborative research community that connects scientific curiosity with real-world musculoskeletal health challenges. Their work spans bone, muscle, joint, systemic disease, aging, pain, cancer, fracture healing, muscular dystrophy and the biology of repair and regeneration.

Explore the PhD Program

Explore ICMH research


A center-based community of trainees

ICMH students work with mentors and research teams across departments, schools and scientific disciplines. The center-based environment gives trainees access to a broad research community, peer support, journal clubs, data discussions, professional development and opportunities to connect their research to clinical and translational questions.


Piper Wilburn

Piper Wilburn

ECM interactions with hematopoietic and stromal stem cells in aging.

Mentor: Milos Marinkovic, PhD

Pelumi Adedigba

Pelumi Adedigba

Gut-bone axis in bone health

Mentor: Brenda Smith, PhD

Paola Ortiz Gonzalez

Paola Ortiz Gonzalez

Sexual dimorphism of of muscle wasting and bone loss in colorectal cancer

Mentors: Joshua R. Huot, PhD & Lilian I. Plotkin, PhD

Upasana Ganguly

Upasana (Sana) Ganguly

Role of pro-nociceptive signaling in fracture-induced chronic pain 

Mentor: Melissa Kacena, PhD

Spencer Britton

Spencer Britton

Role of facture-induced pain in fracture healing

Mentor: Melissa Kacena, PhD

megan troyer

Meagan Troyer

Sexual dimorphism of the bone marrow niche

Mentor: Melissa Kacena, PhD

Conner Quinlan

Conner Quinlan

Aging and Extracellular Matrix Biology

Mentor: Milos Marinkovic, PhD

Elizabeth G. Walsh

Elizabeth G. Walsh

Skeletal muscle metabolism in muscle hypertrophy

Mentor: Carol Witczak, PhD