Hope Welhaven, PhD’s multi-omic research is uncovering key metabolic mechanisms in the development of osteoarthritis and paving the way for new therapies in musculoskeletal health.
San Francisco, CA (May 20, 2026) — Hope Welhaven, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Laboratory for Musculoskeletal Crosstalk at UCSF Orthopaedic Surgery, has been named a winner of the Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) New Investigator Recognition Award (NIRA) at the society’s 2026 Annual Meeting, held from March 27–31 at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. UCSF had two finalists at the meeting, with Welhaven taking the top honor among early‑career researchers presenting outstanding work.
Welhaven, who earned her PhD in Biochemistry from Montana State University, uses multi‑omic approaches to uncover metabolic changes and potential biomarkers in osteoarthritis, exploring the interplay of sex hormones, aging, and OA metabolism. Her work aligns with the Lab for Musculoskeletal Crosstalk’s goal of identifying systemic mediators that could treat, manage, or prevent diseases that co‑occur with aging and obesity, leveraging cutting‑edge tools such as CRISPR‑Cas9 engineering, induced pluripotent stem cells, and spatial multi‑omic profiling.
“Hope’s research is transforming how we understand osteoarthritis and sex differences in musculoskeletal health,” said Dr. Kelsey Collins, principal investigator of the lab. “Her findings have the potential to improve patient outcomes and inspire the next generation of inclusive science.”
Welhaven credited the achievement to her collaborators: “Couldn’t have done it without the whole team, a win for all of us!”
To learn more about the lab, visit https://collinslab.ucsf.edu/.
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