(Pictured: 2020 ORS Spine Section Award Recipients)
The ORS Spine Section was the first research section formed within the ORS. Over the past several years, the membership community has grown to over 300 Section members.
The ORS Spine Section leadership has continued to develop ideas for initiatives that bring value to its Section members, particularly junior investigators. This fellowship promotes research collaboration and the acceleration of the spine field. This fellowship is designed to advance an ongoing study or establish new collaborations by providing a mechanism to promote exchange of research methodologies and/or development of pilot data to support larger scale funding.
We are pleased to announce the recipient of the 2025 ORS Spine Section Travel Fellowship:
Brianna Orozco
Brianna Orozco is a Research Engineer in Dr. Gullbrand’s lab since 2021. Brianna has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from CSUF and is currently in her second year of her Master’s Program in Bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Brianna’s Masters’ Thesis research is focused on understanding alterations in trans-endplate transport across the spectrum of spinal degeneration and the relative contributions of pathology in the boney and cartilage endplate.
Summary of project: Brianna masters’ thesis research is focused on understanding alterations in trans-endplate transport across the spectrum of spinal degeneration and the relative contributions of pathology in the boney and cartilage endplate. For this work, they use human cadaveric spinal samples to assess and correlate trans-endplate diffusion with the structure, composition, and mechanical function of the boney and cartilage endplate to determine factors affecting trans-endplate transport through diffusion and convection. This proposed travel fellowship aims to develop a collaboration with Dr. Aaron Fields to teach her how to conduct and replicate convection studies through our human endplate tissue samples which include both the cartilage and boney endplate.
Overview
This fellowship will provide $1,500 for an ORS Spine Section researcher at any career level to collaborate with an established and committed host Principal Investigator.
Funding
- The award will recognize an applicant and a host PI and provide $1,500 to support the travel of the applicant for research exchange with the host PI.
- Award funds should be used to cover the costs of furthering an ongoing piece of research or act as a pilot project fostering new collaborations.
Eligibility
Host: The host should be a well-established researcher who has demonstrated an outstanding and sustained commitment to training and collaboration. The host can be at any career stage beyond their PhD, MD, or DVM with a well-documented and sustained track-record of collaboration, with particular emphasis given to diversity and inclusion. The host must also have clearly demonstrated impactful research relevant to the applicant’s research project; this may be viewed in its broadest sense.
Applicant: The applicant must be an ORS and ORS Spine Section member in good standing. The applicant can be a graduate trainee, or at any career stage beyond their MD, PhD, DVM or equivalent with a promising (for trainee applicants) or sustained (for faculty applicants) track-record of research impact. Preference will be given to trainees.
The research collaboration or proposed project must be in line with the research interests of the ORS Spine Section.
Submissions
Submission package must include:
- A completed online application, providing evidence of outstanding collaboration and research training, with special emphasis on the host’s substantive and on-going contributions to diversity and inclusive excellence.
- The application should document a coherent and significant advancement to be made to the applicant research skills or project need.
- Recent CVs of the applicant and host in support of the application.
- Letter (2-page max) from the host / host institution endorsing the exchange/travel.
