Hope Welhaven

Montana State University | MSU · Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry

Injury is a risk factor for post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). However, metabolic and microarchitectural changes within the joint post-injury in both sexes remain unexplored. This study identified tissue-specific and spatially-dependent metabolic signatures in male and female mice using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-mass spectromet...

The elderly are at increased risk of bone fracture and more often consume poor quality diets, such as high-fat diet (HFD). We hypothesized that HFD would exacerbate the loss of bone fracture resistance in aging. To test this hypothesis, we fed 5-month and 22-month C57BL/6JN mice of both sexes HFD or low-fat diet for 8 weeks. Aging and HFD lowered b...

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic joint disease with heterogenous metabolic pathology. To gain insight into OA-related metabolism, metabolite extracts from healthy (n = 11) and end-stage osteoarthritic cartilage (n = 35) were analyzed using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry metabolomic profiling. Specific metabolites and metabolic pathways, in...

Objective: The Intensive Diet and Exercise for Arthritis (IDEA) trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of diet and exercise on osteoarthritis (OA), the most prevalent form of arthritis. Various risk factors, such as obesity and sex, contribute to the debilitating nature of OA. While diet and exercise are known to improve OA symptoms, cellular...

Objective: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic joint disease with heterogenous metabolic pathology. To gain insight into OA-related metabolism, healthy and end-stage osteoarthritic cartilage were compared metabolically to uncover disease-associated profiles, classify OA-specific metabolic endotypes, and identify targets for intervention for the divers...

The gut microbiome impacts bone mass, which implies a disruption to bone homeostasis. However, it is not yet clear how the gut microbiome affects the regulation of bone mass and bone quality. We hypothesized that germ-free (GF) mice have increased bone mass and decreased bone toughness compared with conventionally-housed mice. We tested this hypoth...

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is characterized by the formation of numerous fluid-filled cysts that lead to progressive loss of functional nephrons. Currently, there is an unmet need for diagnostic and prognostic indicators of early-stage ADPKD. Metabolites were extracted from the urine of early-stage ADPKD patients (n=48) an...

Background Post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) is caused by knee injuries like anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. Often, ACL injuries are accompanied by damage to other tissues and structures within the knee including the meniscus. Both are known to cause PTOA but underlying cellular mechanisms driving disease remain unknown. Aside from in...

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is characterized by the formation of numerous fluid-filled cysts that lead to progressive loss of functional nephrons. Currently, there is an unmet need for diagnostic and prognostic indicators of early stages of the disease. Metabolites were extracted from the urine of early-stage ADPKD patients...

The gut microbiome impacts bone mass, implying a disruption to bone homeostasis, yet significant uncertainty remains regarding the impacts of the gut microbiome on remodeling bone cells. The gut microbiome is thought to be essential for normal biomineralization, but the specific consequences of the absent gut microbiome on tissue mineralization and...

Metabolism has long been recognized as a critical physiological process necessary to maintain homeostasis in all types of cells including the chondrocytes of articular cartilage. Alterations in metabolism in disease and metabolic adaptation to physiological stimuli such as mechanical loading are increasingly recognized as important for understandin...

Cortical bone quality, which is sexually dimorphic, depends on bone turnover and therefore the activities of remodeling bone cells. However, sex differences in cortical bone metabolism are not yet defined. Adding to the uncertainty about cortical bone metabolism, the metabolomes of whole bone, isolated cortical bone without marrow, and bone marrow...

Mechanotransduction is a biological phenomenon where mechanical stimuli are converted to biochemical responses. A model system for studying mechanotransduction are the chondrocytes of articular cartilage. Breakdown of this tissue results in decreased mobility, increased pain, and reduced quality of life. Either disuse or overloading can disrupt car...

The material properties of bone tissue depend on the activity of remodeling bone cells, but the impact of bone cell metabolism on bone tissue is uncertain. To date, the metabolome of bone has not been evaluated for cortical bone, bone marrow, or whole bone including both tissue types. Furthermore, it is of particular interest whether the cortical b...

Mechanotransduction is a biological phenomenon where mechanical stimuli are converted to biochemical responses. A model system for studying mechanotransduction are the chondrocytes of articular cartilage. Breakdown of this tissue results in decreased mobility, increased pain, and reduced quality of life. Either disuse or overloading can disrupt car...

Objective To compare the early responses to joint injury in conventional and germ-free mice. Design Post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) was induced using a non-invasive anterior cruciate ligament rupture model in 20-week old germ-free (GF) and conventional C57BL/6 mice. Injury was induced in the left knees of n=8 GF and n=10 conventional mice. To...

Objective To compare the early responses to joint injury in conventional and germ-free mice. Design Post traumatic osteoarthritis PTOA was induced using a non-invasive anterior cruciate ligament rupture model in 20-week old germ-free (GF) and conventional C57BL/6 mice. Injury was induced in the left knees of n=8 GF and n=10 conventional mice. To e...