Education
Bachelor of Science, Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, 2017

Biography

Sara joined the lab as a junior at UC Berkeley through Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program (URAP). She decided to continue exploring her research interests in disc biomechanics after graduating in 2017. Her current work focuses on how dynamic loading affects nutrient transport across the cartilage endplate. She first became interested in biomedical research during a summer program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where she worked on developing intracellular nitric oxide delivery methods for the treatment of tuberculosis and leishmaniasis. Her later undergraduate research projects examined endplate compositional factors that regulate disc cell metabolism and the effect of diabetes on collagen fibril deformation mechanisms. Sara was also heavily involved in biodesign at Berkeley. Her capstone design project focused on addressing obstacles to vital signs monitoring in resource-limited hospitals. After performing field research in Uganda, her team developed a functional prototype, which placed 2nd in the Big Ideas competition in global health. Sara hopes to enter medical school in the future.

Research Interests

• Discogenic low back pain
• Cartilage endplate transport properties

Favorite Animal

Tabby cats
 

Contact
[email protected]