Paula Hernandez, Ph.D. Titles and Appointments Assistant Professor Schools Medical School | Graduate School Departments Orthopaedic Surgery | Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs Biomedical Engineering Biography Dr. Hernandez completed her Ph.D. in Molecular, Cell Biology and Neuroscience at the University of Chile in Santiago, Chile, where she worked in Alzheimer's disease. She switched her career to orthopaedic research during her postdoctoral training at UConn Health Center with Dr. Sun-Kyeong Lee. She spent two years training in cartilage biology at the University of Cambridge in UK with Dr. Frances Henson and Dr. John Wardale. In 2014 she returned to the U.S. to work with Dr. Nadeen Chahine in cytoskeleton and intervertebral discs mechanobiology at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in New York. Her research currently explores structural, cellular, and mechanobiological aspects of sexual dimorphism and sex hormones in cartilage health and osteoarthritis. She works in close collaboration with engineers and orthopaedic surgeons. In addition, Dr. Hernandez actively participates in science education & outreach programs, and strongly advocates for women's health research. Education Undergraduate University of Chile (2000), Science Graduate School University of Chile (2007), Science Research Interest Articular cartilage Cell mechanobiology Sex hormones regulating cell mechanics and inflammation Women's health and sex differences Publications Featured Publications Protein Response to ACL Injury in Humans Show Early Cartilage Remodeling and Differences by Sex. Hernandez PA, Chu CR, Huang CY, Xing C, Venkatachalam MV, Pace JL, Singleton SB, bioRxiv 2026 May Sex Hormones & Exercise in the Musculoskeletal System: From Signaling to Structure and Function. Colicchio CJ, Hernandez PA, Robinson JL, Connizzo BK, Endocr Rev 2026 May Fostering Interest in Musculoskeletal Research and Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) Careers: Impact of the ORS Open Door Program, 2020-2025. Marvin JC, Hernandez PA, Wang VM, Bahney C, Loya AK, Drazan JF, McGee-Lawrence ME, J Orthop Res 2026 Jan 44 1 Unraveling sex-specific risks of knee osteoarthritis before menopause: Do sex differences start early in life? Hernandez PA, Bradford JC, Brahmachary P, Ulman S, Robinson JL, June RK, Cucchiarini M, Osteoarthritis Cartilage 2024 May Sexual Dimorphism in the Extracellular and Pericellular Matrix of Articular Cartilage. Hernandez PA, Moreno M, Barati Z, Hutcherson C, Sathe AA, Xing C, Wright J, Welch T, Dhaher Y, Cartilage 2022 Jul-Sep 13 3 19476035221121792 Actomyosin contractility confers mechanoprotection against TNFa-induced disruption of the intervertebral disc. Hernandez PA, Jacobsen TD, Chahine NO, Sci Adv 2020 Aug 6 34 eaba2368 Early-Onset Osteoarthritis originates at the chondrocyte level in Hip Dysplasia. Hernandez PA, Wells J, Usheva E, Nakonezny PA, Barati Z, Gonzalez R, Kassem L, Henson FMD, Sci Rep 2020 01 10 1 627 Mechanotransduction and cell biomechanics of the intervertebral disc. Fearing BV, Hernandez PA, Setton LA, Chahine NO, JOR Spine 2018 Sep 1 3 Fat Phagocytosis Promotes Anti-Inflammatory Responses of Macrophages in a Mouse Model of Osteonecrosis. Deng Z, Kim HKW, Hernandez PA, Ren Y, Cells 2024 Jul 13 14 Response to Commentary by Dvir-Ginzberg et al. Hernandez PA, Osteoarthritis Cartilage 2024 Mar Results 1-10 of 25 1 2 3 Next Last Honors & Awards Conicyt grant award for Ph.D. thesis (2004-2004) Millenium Institute CBB scholarship for research in USA (2003-2003) Conicyt scholarship for Ph.D. studies (2002-2004) Millenium Institute CBB scholarship for research in USA (2002-2002) Professional Associations/Affiliations International Cartilage Regeneration & Joint Preservation Society (2024) ORS Spine section (2017) Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) (2017) Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) (2021)
