Dr. Trippel is a practicing orthopaedic surgeon with a robust basic science research lab. The Trippel lab is focused on the role of growth factors in the regulation of cartilage. Specific areas of investigation include characterization of growth factor receptors on growth plate chondrocytes; analysis of their distribution among growth plate cell populations; evaluation of their relationship to anabolic and mitogenic activity; identification and analysis of interactions between mechanical and biochemical stimuli in the regulation of articular cartilage; investigations of the mechanisms of mechanical signal transduction in articular cartilage; and gene transfer approaches to articular cartilage repair. Trainees participating in the Trippel lab are exposed to chondrocyte cell culture techniques, histological analysis of growth plate and articular chondrocyte metabolism, animal models to study cartilage degeneration and repair, and techniques to study IGF-1 signaling in cells and tissues.