February, 2025
Event Details
Monday, February 24, 2025
12–1 p.m. CT
The TC CFAR will host a hybrid seminar, “Clinical, Behavioral, and Biological Impacts of HIV on Musculoskeletal Health,” featuring Ryan Ross, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology at RUSH University. Rich D’Aquila, MD, a professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at Northwestern University and co-director of the TC CFAR, will moderate the event.
Description
Dr. Ross’ lab utilizes both clinical data, primarily from the MWCCS, and basic preclinical models to investigate risk factors and mechanisms impacting musculoskeletal health in people living with HIV. Within this talk, Dr. Ross will describe the generation and use of a preclinical mouse model to study tissue level mechanisms contributing to adverse musculoskeletal health outcomes. He will also highlight new data collection initiatives within the MWCCS focused on osteoporosis risk and musculoskeletal pain prevalence, including a description of how CFAR members can leverage this, and other data collected within the MWCCS for their own research interests.
About the Presenter
Ryan Ross, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology with conjoint appointments in the Departments of Microbial Pathogens and Immunity and Orthopedic Surgery at RUSH University. His research focuses on the skeleton with an emphasis on musculoskeletal health in people living with HIV and the potential hormonal role of bone. Dr. Ross started working with the Chicago Cook County Clinical Research Site of the MWCCS in 2015 and become an MPI in 2024.
Ongoing projects within the laboratory of Dr. Ross include: (1) disentangling the relative contributions of HIV and antiretroviral therapies to bone loss in people living with HIV, (2) assessing the effects of bone-fat organ crosstalk on anthropometric changes in people living with HIV initiating and switching antiretroviral therapies, (3) determining the prevalence and severity of musculoskeletal pain in people aging with HIV, and (4) determining the link between age-related bone loss and cognitive decline.