About me

I hold a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the Technical University of Munich, where I specialized in computational biomechanics. I conducted my master’s thesis at Harvard Medical School working with Dr. Ara Nazarian. In 2023, I completed my Ph.D. at ETH Zürich, focusing my research on developing CT-based imaging and computational methods to investigate bone health. My goal is to understand how mechanical stimuli contribute to bone health and to identify potential biomarkers that can monitor adverse changes in bone structure and strength caused by conditions like diabetes.

At the Bone Imaging Lab, my work explores how disease affects bone remodeling, as well as the effects of microgravity from space flight. I aim to leverage CT imaging and computer simulations to gain insight into the interplay between bone morphology, mechanical loading, and metabolic influences. My hope is that my research will uncover new ways to assess fracture risk and enable personalized approaches to improving skeletal health. I am committed to advancing the field of digital health by integrating biomechanics, computer modeling, and medical imaging to address critical challenges in bone health assessment and intervention.

My Research

Bone Health in Diabetes

In a healthy adult, the body’s skeleton fully regenerates — or remodels — itself about every three to five years to maintain its strength. At the microscopic level, this process is orchestrated by cells, called osteocytes, which can sense and respond to local mechanical forces. Osteocytes direct bone-forming cells to regions where mechanical stimulations are high, and bone resorbing cells to areas where the stimulus is low. Through this process, excess bone tissue is removed, and new tissue is added where needed to maintain a metabolic balance.

Scientists have recently observed that diabetes may negatively impact our bone health and reduce bone strength. To unravel the underlying reasons, we developed novel methods that enable monitoring of local changes in the bone microstructure over time. Utilizing one of the world’s most powerful supercomputers at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS), this was possible at such high spatial resolution that cellular behaviour of the mechanobiological remodelling process could be studied.

There were, however, technological challenges that prevent the use of these techniques in clinical studies. Although these computations are fast on supercomputers, they were still too slow and cumbersome to run on computer systems available within the clinics. In FIDELIO, we worked with IBM to push bone imaging and computational methods for bone remodelling studies from bench (supercomputer) to the bedside (clinical computing) in the hospital environment. Ultimately, these precise diagnostic tools may be used to tailor medical treatment of diabetic patients to bone health individually.

Microgravity and Space travel

In our research, we explore bone recovery after extended periods without weight bearing load, such as during spaceflight. During these disuse experiences, bone loss occurs at an accelerated rate compared to normal bone turnover. We aim to further scientific understanding of the bone recovery process once normal loading resumes. Does bone regeneration occur? And if so, when, where and how much? We also question whether there may be a limited duration of opportunity for rebuilding bone at sites impacted by the lack of loading.