Osteoarthritis Research Laboratory Members

Anupama obtained her PhD in Cancer Biology from Amrita School of Biotechnology, India. She worked on caspase independent cell death mechanism to combat apoptotic resistant cancer cells. She also worked on the development of theranostic drug delivery system to target cancer cells. Then she pursued her post-doctoral research training from Indian Institute of Technology Palakkad, India. There she worked on chemoproteomic approaches to investigate the protein targets of S-palmitoylation, a lipid-based protein post translational modification. She was also working on a project to study the regulation of mitochondrial dynamics by S-palmitoylation. In Zhu鈥檚 lab, she is working on the role of acetyl CoA carboxylase 1 enzyme in OA development and chondrocyte metabolism by regulating Lysine malonylation of proteins. In her leisure time, she loves cooking, watching movies and dancing with her daughter on Bollywood songs.

Huanhuan obtained her PhD in the Stem cell and Regenerative Medicine at Zhejiang University in China. Her research there was to investigate the role of the transcription factor Mohawk (Mkx) in tendon development and regeneration. Then she did her postdoc training at the Johns Hopkins University. She worked a project to engineer a synthetic nanofiber-reinforced amniotic membrane for soft tissue engineering. She is now leading a project on protein malonylation and chondrocyte metabolism in OA development.

Anna is an undergraduate student at 花季传媒. She is studying biological sciences in the Honors Tutorial College and aspires of attending medical school to work as a family medicine doctor with a focus on treatment using osteopathic manipulative medicine. She is currently investigating how Sirt5 deficiency and obesity could affect the hip health in mice. She is involved in Tri-Beta, AMSA, H.I.K.E. and Pre-SOMA. She also loves to watch soccer, exercise, and spend time with her cat and two dogs.

Shadi is currently pursuing her PhD in the translational biomedical sciences at 花季传媒. Prior to this, she completed a master's degree in medical immunology and a bachelor's degree in medical laboratory sciences in Iran. Her research centered around bioinformatics and immunological mechanisms. She is currently investigating the role of chondrocyte lipid metabolism in obesity associated osteoarthritis development. In her spare time, she finds pleasure in playing her musical instrument and is also a passionate hiker.

Siqi Ren graduated from Hangzhou Medical College with a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree in 2023. During her undergraduate studies, she participated in research projects on gut microbiology and pharmacology. She is a graduate student in the Translational Biomedical Sciences program. Her project in the Zhu lab is focused on studying the role of Growth hormone (GH) in chondrocyte metabolism and and OA research. She is also helping take care of different lines of mice in the lab.

Abhijit Sukul began his academic journey at the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in Pharcaceutical Sciences, followed by a master's degree in Pharmacology. He then persued a PhD in Chemistry and Biochemistry at 花季传媒, where he focused on identifying small RNAs associated with the plant cell wall biosynthesis. He has joined Dr. Zhu's lab as a postdoctoral researcher, concentrating on exploring the role of growth hormone in chondrocyte metabolism and osteoarthritis development. His other interests include playing the guitar, traveling, photography, and sports.