Christopher Chen, Ph.D.

Dr. Chen joined UT Southwestern in 2010 as an Assistant Professor and the Director of Research in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery. He is also the Director of Biomaterials, Mechanics, and Tissue Engineering Track of the Biomedical Engineering Program at UT Southwestern. Dr. Chen’s research is focused on early changes of injured joints and the role of mechanobiology in joint inflammation and cartilage degeneration. He is also working on connective tissue repair/regeneration (bone, ligament, tendon and cartilage). His studies are supported by National Institutes of Health and multiple foundations (Arthritis Foundation, ANRF AOSSM, OTA, AANA and OREF). Dr. Chen has contributed to more than 30 peer-review papers in the field of orthopedics and bioengineering.

Undergraduate	National Taiwan University - Taiwan (1986)
Graduate School	University of Wisconsin-madison (1991), Mechanical Engineering
Graduate School	University of Wisconsin-madison (1996)

• Connective Tissue Healing (bone, ligament, tendon, and cartilage)
• Connective Tissue Imaging (MRI, CT, FTIR, Ultrasound)
• Posttraumatic Arthritis and Cartilage Degeneration
• Tissue Engineering and Cartilage Mechanobiology
• Tissue Mechanics

Featured Publications

Failed healing of rotator cuff repair correlates with altered collagenase and gelatinase in supraspinatus and subscapularis tendons (*Corresponding Author)

Robertson CM, Chen CT, Shindle MK, Cordasco FA, Rodeo SA, Warren RF Am J Sports Med, 2012 40 9 1993 - 2001

Time, stress, and location dependent chondrocyte death and collagen damage in cyclically loaded articular cartilage

Chen CT, Bhargava M, Lin PM, Torzilli PA. J Orthop Res September 2003 21(5) 888-98

Matrix fixed-charge density as determined by magnetic resonance microscopy of bioreactor-derived hyaline cartilage correlates with biochemical and biomechanical properties

Chen CT, Fishbein KW, Torzilli PA, Hilger A, Spencer RG, Horton WE Jr. Arthritis Rheum. April 2003 48 (4) 1047-56

Chondrocyte necrosis and apoptosis in impact damaged articular cartilage

Chen CT, Burton-Wurster N, Borden C, Hueffer K, Bloom SE, Lust G. J Orthop Res. 2001 July 2001 19(4) 703-11

A Comparative Study of Fibronectin Cleavage by MMP-1, -3, -13, and -14

X Zhang, Chen CT, Bhargava M, Torzilli PA Cartilage 2012 3 3 267-277

Full-thickness supraspinatus tears are associated with more synovial inflammation and tissue degeneration than partial-thickness tears (*Corresponding Author)

MK Shindle, CT Chen, C Robertson, AE DiTullio, MC Paulus, CM Clinton, FA Cordasco, SA Rodeo, RF. Warren J Shoulder & Elbow Surgery 2011 20 6

Mechanical load inhibits IL-1 induced matrix degradation in articular cartilage

Torzilli PA, Bhargava M, Park S, Chen C.T. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage January 2010 18(1) 97-105

Chondrocyte death and cartilage degradation after autologous osteochondral transplantation surgery in a rabbit model

Gulotta LV, Rudzki JR, Kovacevic D, Chen CC, Milentijevic D, Williams RJ 3rd. Am J Sports Med July 2009 37(7) 1324-33

Material properties of fresh cold-stored allografts for osteochondral defects at 1 year

Ranawat AS, Vidal AF, Chen CT, Zelken JA, Turner AS, Williams RJ 3rd. Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research August 2008 466(8) 1826-36

Biochemical and biomechanical properties of lesion and peri-lesion tissue after cartilage repair with genetically modified chondrocytes in an equine model.

Strauss E., Hidaka C., Chen CT, Goodrich L., Nixon A Am. J. Sport Medicine 2006 33 1647-53

• Eastern Orthopaedic Society Founder’s Award
  (2007)
• Fellow of National Arthritis Research Foundation
  National Arthritis Research Foundation (2004)
• Herodicus Award, Herodicus Society
  American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (2003)
• MSRC Biomechanics Award in Bone/Orthopedics
  American Society of Biomechanics (1999)

• American Society of Biomechanics
• American Society of Mechanical Engineers
• Orthopaedic Research Society
• Osteoarthritis Research Society International