Robert L Mauck

About

Robert L Mauck, PhD, is the Mary Black Ralston Professor of Education and Research in Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a Senior Research Career Scientist and Co-Director of the Translational Musculoskeletal Research Center at the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center in Philadelphia. Dr. Mauck's research program focuses on the engineering and mechanobiology of musculoskeletal tissues, with particular interest in restoring articular cartilage, the knee meniscus, and the intervertebral disc. His team employs mechanical and molecular analyses to explore native tissue structure-function-phenotype relationships in health and disease, using this information to develop technologies that enhance tissue regeneration. His work investigates progenitor cell function and efficacy across various biomaterial contexts and multiple length scales, from subcellular biophysical properties to engineered systems in large animal models. Supported by funding from the NIH, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and private foundations, Dr. Mauck has published over 310 manuscripts cited more than 20,000 times and has mentored more than 40 PhD, MD-PhD, and VMD-PhD students and postdoctoral fellows.

Research topics

• Anatomy
• Pathology
• Medicine
• Cancer research
• Cell biology
• Materials science
• Biophysics
• Biology

Selected publications

• Targeting cartilage EGFR pathway for osteoarthritis treatment

  Science Translational Medicine · 2021 · 175 citations

  Osteoarthritis (OA) is a widespread joint disease for which there are no disease-modifying treatments. Previously, we found that mice with cartilage-specific epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) deficiency developed accelerated knee OA. To test whether the EGFR pathway can be targeted as a potential OA therapy, we constructed two cartilage-specific EGFR overactivation models in mice by overexpressing heparin binding EGF-like growth factor (HBEGF), an EGFR ligand. Compared to wild type, Col2-C…

  DOI

• Early changes in cartilage pericellular matrix micromechanobiology portend the onset of post-traumatic osteoarthritis

  Acta Biomaterialia · 2020-05-16 · 111 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Nuclear envelope wrinkling predicts mesenchymal progenitor cell mechano-response in 2D and 3D microenvironments

  Biomaterials · 2021 · 69 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  DOI

• Revealing the biophysics of lamina-associated domain formation by integrating theoretical modeling and high-resolution imaging

  Nature Communications · 2025-08-25 · 12 citations

  articleOpen access

  Chromatin-lamina interactions regulate gene activity by forming lamina-associated domains (LADs), which contribute to cellular identity through gene repression. However, the strength of these interactions and their responsiveness to environmental cues remain unclear. Here, we develop a theoretical framework to predict LAD morphology in human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), whose differentiation potential depends on the stiffness of the microenvironment. Our model integrates chromatin-lamina inter…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Precision repair of zone-specific meniscal injuries using a tunable extracellular matrix-based hydrogel system

  Bioactive Materials · 2025-02-22 · 9 citations

  articleOpen access

  Meniscus injuries present significant therapeutic challenges due to their limited self-healing capacity and the diverse biological and mechanical properties across the tissue. Conventional repair strategies do not replicate the complex zonal characteristics within the meniscus, resulting in suboptimal outcomes. In this study, we introduce an innovative fetal/adult and stiffness-tunable meniscus decellularized extracellular matrix (DEM)-based hydrogel system designed for precision repair of heter…

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Engineered Developmental Microenvironments: Cartilage Formation and Maturation

  NIH · $2.5M · 2009–2026

• Training Program in Musculoskeletal Research

  NIH · $6.1M · 1976–2028

• RR&D Senior Research Career Scientist Award

  NIH · 2020–2031

Frequent coauthors

• George R. Dodge

  University of Pennsylvania

  153 shared

• Jason A. Burdick

  University of Colorado Boulder

  141 shared

• Jaimo Ahn

  132 shared

• Mara L. Schenker

  124 shared

• Samir Mehta

  121 shared

• Sarah E. Gullbrand

  109 shared

• Lachlan J. Smith

  University of Sydney

  95 shared

• Harvey E. Smith

  89 shared

Labs

• Translational Musculoskeletal Research CenterPI

Education

• PhD, Biomedical Engineering

  Columbia University

  2003

Awards & honors

• Mary Black Ralston Professor for Education and Research in O…
• Member, Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutic…
• Member, Penn Center for Musculoskeletal Disorders
• Member, Institute for Medicine and Engineering
• Member, Institute on Aging

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