Christian Michael Chung, MS

I am a PhD student in Bioengineering co-advised by Dr. Chelsea Bahney at UCSF and Dr. Grace Gu at UC Berkeley. Prior to my PhD, my research work focused on computational and synthetic biology approaches to tissue engineering, specifically focused on early-stage patterns and structural formations observed in embryogenesis. My work (in the lab of Dr. Leonardo Morsut at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC) has merged together in silico simulations with in vitro experimentations and validations, helping to push forward the narrative of bridging the computational and experimental world in a robust and efficient manner. 

My current work at the Orthopaedic Trauma Institute at UCSF leverages my experience in computational biology and tissue engineering to advance our current methods of understanding and modeling fracture prediction. While diseases such as osteoporosis impact millions globally, current fracture prediction tools are limited to density metrics or population-level statistics. My work takes inspiration from aperiodic composites and lattices (an area of expertise from my co-PI, Dr. Grace Gu) as a way to reframe our understanding of the bone microarchitecture so that we can develop stronger multimodal models for fracture prediction. I work alongside microscopy and imaging teams, mechanical engineers, and clinicians to ensure our models are both accurate and clinically applicable so that we can shift the paradigm for fracture prediction to one that is specialized per patient. Some other projects that I work on are centered around leveraging computational design to understanding multiscale biological systems, such as generating biophysical models of epithelial tissues and developing microrobots/stents for blood clot occlusions. My overarching goal is to produce better computational models and tools that can be directly utilized by clinicians or industry professionals, ensuring that our work can have a direct impact on patient health.