Professor and Chief Scientific Officer
Shirley Ryan Ability Lab
Departments of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Biomedical Engineering
Northwestern University
Senior Research Career Scientist
Hines VA Medical Center

 

Rick Lieber is a physiologist who earned his Ph.D. in Biophysics from U.C. Davis developing a theory of light diffraction that was applied to mechanical studies of single muscle cells.  He joined the faculty at the University of California, San Diego in 1985 where he spent the first 30+ years of his academic career, achieving the rank of Professor and Vice-Chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.  He received his M.B.A. in 2013 and is currently Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab (formerly Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago) and Professor of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Physiology and Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University in Chicago, IL.

Dr. Lieber’s work represents a translational approach, applying basic scientific principles to help patients who have experienced spinal cord injury, stroke, musculoskeletal trauma and cerebral palsy —an approach that is relevant to those who study biomechanics, rehabilitation and orthopaedic surgery.  He has published over 350 articles in journals ranging from the very basic such as The Biophysical Journal, Journal of Cell Science and The Journal of Cell Biology to applied clinical journals such as The Journal of Hand Surgery, Archives of PM&R, and Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.  Dr. Lieber’s research focuses on design and plasticity of skeletal muscle.  Currently, he is developing state-of-the-art biological and biophysical approaches to understanding muscle contractures that result from cerebral palsy, stroke and spinal cord injury.

In recognition of the clinical impact of his basic science studies, Dr. Lieber has been honored by the Department of Veterans Affairs (Paul B. Magnuson Award), the Elsass Foundation (Research in CP Award), American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (Kappa Delta Award; twice), the American Bone and Joint Surgeons (Nicolas Andry Award) the American College of Sports Medicine (Fellow), the American Society for Biomechanics (Borelli Award; Hay Award; Fellow), the Council for the International Exchange of Scholars (Fulbright Fellowship) and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE; Fellow). He was also named a Senior Research Career Scientist from the Department of Veterans Affairs from which he has received continuous support since 1985.

Interview:

What are your specific research areas and expertise?

Muscle mechanics and its application to problems in cerebral palsy and spinal cord injury.

Who have been your mentors?

My colleague, Dr. Jan Fridén and my close friend who just passed, Reggie Edgerton.

What are you currently working on? 

One fun thing is making direct physiological measurements on ISOLATED human gracilis muscles as they are being transplanted from the leg to the arm!          Yikes!

What has been the biggest challenge for you? 

Always logistics. The OR and clinical environments can be very restrictive.

What project(s) are you looking forward to in the near future?

I have a laser prototype that can go through human skin and measure muscle properties in real-time. It’s a hammer looking for a nail and no-one wants to fund it!

What do you want to do next in your career?

I am thoroughly enjoying being the Chief Scientific Officer over 45 wonderful scientists.  Using my skills to make them more successful is extremely gratifying

What advice would you give young investigators? 

Do what you love.  Try not to just follow the crowd or the money.  Get a close colleague partner. My hand surgery buddy, Jan Fridén, has made a huge                  difference in my life (see PMID: 35221173)

When you’re not in the lab, what do you like to do for fun?

I’m a runner and a musician!

What resources would you like to see available from the ORS Tendon Section? 

Turn it into a muscle session!

How can we follow you?
X: @lieber_rick
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-lieber-8006353a/