Dr. Donnelly received her B.S. and M.S. in Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University. In 2007 she received her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University, where she examined the role of mineral and collagen on the mechanical properties of bone tissue at multiple length scales. As a postdoctoral fellow she studied skeletal tissue biology and biophysical imaging in Biomedical Sciences at Cornell and material properties of osteoporotic bone in the Mineralized Tissues Laboratory at the Hospital for Special Surgery.
Dr. Donnelly received an NIH Ruth L Kirchstein National Research Service Award for her postdoctoral fellowship at HSS examining the effects of bone tissue mineral and collagen properties on fracture incidence. She received the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research’s Young Investigator Award in 2010 and Junior Faculty Osteoporosis Research Award in 2012 for her work on the effects of bisphosphonates on bone tissue properties. She received the New Investigator Recognition Award from the Orthopedic Research Society in 2009 and the Alice L. Jee Memorial Young Investigator Award from the Sun Valley Workshop on Skeletal Tissue Biology in 2007 for her work on imaging primary cilia in skeletal tissues. In 2103 she received an NIH K01 award to study bone material properties and mechanical behavior in Type 2 diabetic patients and in 2015 received an NSF CAREER award, “CAREER: Role of Variations in Tissue Material Properties in Bone Fracture Behavior.”
The focus of the lab is characterization of the contribution of tissue microstructure and composition to the material and structural behavior of healthy and pathologic connective tissues. The primary research focus is on the contribution of the organic and inorganic bone tissue constituents to material properties and whole-bone strength. The long-term goals of the work are to integrate materials science with translational orthopedic research to develop a mechanistic understanding of pathologic fractures in bone to (1) identify the factors that contribute to the integrity of healthy bone tissue (“bone quality”) and (2) improve prediction of structural failure and treatments that may restore function to diseased bone tissue.
The primary focus is translational studies that act at the interface between basic science and clinical research, with the goal of translating basic science results to the clinic to improve prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases that degrade tissue integrity. In addition, the translational studies are supported with fundamental studies in model systems. Workhorse techniques include Fourier transform infrared imaging and Raman imaging, as well as multiphoton microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and nanoindentation.
