Dr. Danielle Whittier
Affiliations
Assistant Professor
Cumming School of Medicine, Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy
Joint Appointment
Cumming School of Medicine, Department of Radiology | Image Science
Canada Research Chair Tier II in Pediatric Musculoskeletal Imaging
Cumming School of Medicine
Full Member
McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health
Child Health & Wellness Researcher
Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute
Contact information
I'm looking for...
Research assistants
Currently looking for full-time graduate students a part-time research lab assistant to support pre-clinical experimental studies of bone mechanobiology.
Background
Educational Background
Postdoctoral Fellow (PDF) Biomedical Engineering Bone Mechanobiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zürich, 2023
PhD Biomedical Engineering (Medical Imaging Specialization), University of Calgary, 2021
BSc Engineering Physics (Mechanical Option), Queen's University, 2013
Research
Participation in university strategic initiatives
Courses
| Course number | Course title | Semester |
|---|---|---|
| MDSC 751.31 | Joint Injury and Disease – Biomechanical Focus | Spring 2024 |
| MDSC 402 | Organismal Biology | 2024 - Ongoing |
Projects
This NSERC-funded project investigates how mechanical forces influence bone growth, from cellular-level changes to whole-bone development. While mechanical regulation of adult bone remodelling has been more extensively studied, much less is known about how mechanical stresses influence bone growth. Our lab uses an experimental murine tibia loading model, microCT imaging, histological and cellular-level analyses, and mechanical assessment to study how the growing skeleton responds to its physical environment.
This project is actively seeking graduate and undergraduate honours students across backgrounds spanning biomedical sciences, biomechanics, and engineering. Students on this project will gain hands-on training in bone biology, experimental biomechanics, imaging, and tissue-level analysis while contributing to a deeper understanding of how mechanical forces guide skeletal growth and adaptation.
Our lab is investigating how bone repairs itself during pubertal growth following fracture and why healing differs between individuals. Using longitudinal high-resolution imaging (HR-pQCT) of wrist fractures, we examine the biological and mechanical processes that drive bone regeneration, from early callus formation to the restoration of normal bone structure and strength. A major focus is understanding how factors such as obesity, growth, and muscle strength influence fracture healing and recovery. This project is funded through a SickKids ECR Operating Grant.
Children with obesity are at greater risk of fractures despite having higher bone mineral density. Our lab uses advanced musculoskeletal imaging (HR-pQCT) alongside computational modelling to investigate bone microarchitecture and biomechanical properties of bone during growth. Our goal is to understand how obesity alters the growing skeleton in order to improve fracture risk assessment and developing strategies to promote lifelong bone health. We study how changes in bone structure, body composition, metabolism, and mechanical loading may contribute to altered bone adaptation in children and adolescents with obesity.
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) affects bone development and joint health in children and adolescents, but its cause and progression are unpredictable. Our lab uses multi-modal imaging to study changes in bone microarchitecture and the development of bone erosions, with the goal of detecting joint damage earlier and understanding how it progresses over time. By comparing novel high-resolution imaging with conventional clinical imaging, we aim to improve the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of JIA while gaining new insights into how inflammatory arthritis affects the growing skeleton.
Publications
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