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Aaron Fields, PhD

Title(s)Associate Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery
SchoolSchool of Medicine
Address513 Parnassus Ave
San Francisco CA 94143
Phone415-476-1128
EmailAaron.Fields@ucsf.edu
ORCID ORCID Icon0000-0001-6460-4506 Additional info
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    Collapse Biography 
    Collapse Education and Training
    University of DenverBS2005Mechanical Engineering
    University of California, BerkeleyPhD2010Mechanical Engineering
    University of California, San FranciscoPostdoctoral Fellowship2013Orthopaedic Surgery
    University of California, San Francisco, CA2019Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion Training
    Collapse Awards and Honors
    American Society for Bone and Mineral Research2007Young Investigator Travel Award
    University of California, San Francisco2011Postdoctoral Scholar Travel Award
    Philadelphia Spine Research Society2011Young Investigator Award
    Journal of Bone and Mineral Research2012Cover image, October 2012: Fields et al. "Vertebral fragility and structural redundancy"
    American Society for Bone and Mineral Research2013Young Investigator Travel Award
    Journal of Orthopaedic Research2015Editor's pick, June 2015: Fields et al. "Alterations in intervertebral disc composition..."
    U.S. Bone and Joint Initiative2015Young Investigator Initiative
    North American Spine Society2016Young Investigator Research Grant Award
    Orthopaedic Research Society2017Spine Section Podium Award
    North American Spine Society2018Young Investigator Research Grant Award
    International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine2019Best Basic Science Poster Award

    Collapse Overview 
    Collapse Overview
    Aaron Fields, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at UCSF. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Denver in 2005, and his Masters and Doctoral degrees, also in Mechanical Engineering, from the University of California, Berkeley in 2008 and 2010. His undergraduate research was on the use of probabilistic techniques to evaluate knee implant performance, and both of his graduate thesis projects focused on discovering the mechanisms of vertebral fragility using high-resolution computational models. Aaron was appointed to a faculty position at UCSF after completing his post-doctoral fellowship in Orthopaedic Surgery in 2015. His background includes extensive research in experimental and computational biomechanics. Aaron is an active member of the Orthopaedic Research Society and the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine.

    Aaron currently directs the Orthopaedic Biomechanics and Biotransport Laboratory at UCSF. The lab's broad research interests are related to structure-function relationships in musculoskeletal tissues, with a particular focus on the mechanisms of nutrient transport in bone and cartilage and harnessing nutrient transport for tissue repair and regeneration. The lab combines engineering and biology approaches for (1) understanding the effects of aging and disease on structure-transport relationships and (2) developing translatable diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. An overall theme of this research is the use of advanced experimental and computational tools to measure how tissue constituents at the nano- and microscales impact whole-organ behavior.

    Current projects:
    1. diagnostic tools for assessing endplate permeability and therapies for enhancing endplate permeability

    2. role of lacunar-canalicular system permeability in osteonecrosis of the femoral head

    3. nanoscale and microscale contributions to diabetic skeletal fragility

    Collapse Research 
    Collapse Research Activities and Funding
    Novel imaging of endplate biomarkers in chronic low back pain
    NIH/NIAMS UH2AR076719Sep 26, 2019 - Aug 31, 2021
    Role: Principal Investigator
    UCSF Core Center for Patient-centric Mechanistic Phenotyping in Chronic Low Back Pain
    NIH/NIAMS U19AR076737Sep 25, 2019 - May 31, 2024
    Role: Co-Investigator
    Does enhancing cartilage endplate permeability improve nucleus pulposus cell function?
    North American Spine Society Jan 1, 2019 - Dec 31, 2019
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Role of the cartilage endplate in spinal disc degeneration
    NIH/NIAMS R01AR070198Apr 1, 2017 - Jan 31, 2022
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Does Cartilage Endplate Permeability Impact Nucleus Pulposus Cell Function?
    North American Spine Society Jan 1, 2017 - Dec 31, 2017
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Measurement of the effect of cartilage endplate permeability on disc cell function using in situ hybridization
    UCSF Core Center for Musculoskeletal Biology in Medicine Jun 1, 2016 - May 31, 2017
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Enhancing endplate permeability to treat or prevent intervertebral disc degeneration
    UCSF Center for Disruptive Musculoskeletal Innovation Oct 1, 2015 - Sep 30, 2016
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Cartilage endplate composition and disc degeneration: investigating nutrient diffusion and disc cell viability
    UCSF School of Medicine Jul 1, 2015 - Jun 30, 2016
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Endplate dysfunction and disc degeneration: investigating solute transport, disc cell viability and new imaging methods
    UCSF Core Center for Musculoskeletal Biology in Medicine Apr 3, 2015 - Jun 30, 2016
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Phenotypes of pathologic vertebral endplate degeneration
    NIH/NIAMS R56AR063705Aug 1, 2013 - Aug 31, 2020
    Role: Co-Investigator

    Collapse ORNG Applications 
    Collapse In The News

    Collapse Bibliographic 
    Collapse Publications
    Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Researchers can login to make corrections and additions, or contact us for help. to make corrections and additions.
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    Altmetrics Details PMC Citations indicate the number of times the publication was cited by articles in PubMed Central, and the Altmetric score represents citations in news articles and social media. (Note that publications are often cited in additional ways that are not shown here.) Fields are based on how the National Library of Medicine (NLM) classifies the publication's journal and might not represent the specific topic of the publication. Translation tags are based on the publication type and the MeSH terms NLM assigns to the publication. Some publications (especially newer ones and publications not in PubMed) might not yet be assigned Field or Translation tags.) Click a Field or Translation tag to filter the publications.
    1. Evaluation of human cartilage endplate composition using MRI: spatial variation, association with adjacent disc degeneration, and in vivo repeatability. J Orthop Res. 2020 Jun 27. Wang L, Han M, Wong J, Zheng P, Lazar AA, Krug R, Fields AJ. PMID: 32592504.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    2. Serum Biomarkers for Connective Tissue and Basement Membrane Remodeling are Associated with Vertebral Endplate Bone Marrow Lesions as Seen on MRI (Modic Changes). Int J Mol Sci. 2020 May 27; 21(11). Dudli S, Ballatori A, Bay-Jensen AC, McCormick ZL, O'Neill CW, Demir-Deviren S, Krug R, Heggli I, Juengel A, Karppinen J, Brunner F, Farshad M, Distler O, Lotz JC, Fields AJ. PMID: 32471173.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    3. Osteocyte dysfunction promotes osteoarthritis through MMP13-dependent suppression of subchondral bone homeostasis. Bone Res. 2019; 7:34. Mazur CM, Woo JJ, Yee CS, Fields AJ, Acevedo C, Bailey KN, Kaya S, Fowler TW, Lotz JC, Dang A, Kuo AC, Vail TP, Alliston T. PMID: 31700695.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    4. Measuring and reporting of vertebral endplate bone marrow lesions as seen on MRI (Modic changes): recommendations from the ISSLS Degenerative Spinal Phenotypes Group. Eur Spine J. 2019 10; 28(10):2266-2274. Fields AJ, Battié MC, Herzog RJ, Jarvik JG, Krug R, Link TM, Lotz JC, O'Neill CW, Sharma A. PMID: 31446492.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    
    5. The Relationship Between Endplate Pathology and Patient-reported Symptoms for Chronic Low Back Pain Depends on Lumbar Paraspinal Muscle Quality. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2019 Jul 15; 44(14):1010-1017. Bailey JF, Fields AJ, Ballatori A, Cohen D, Jain D, Coughlin D, O'Neill C, McCormick Z, Han M, Krug R, Demir-Deviren S, Lotz JC. PMID: 30896590.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    6. Matrix modification for enhancing the transport properties of the human cartilage endplate to improve disc nutrition. PLoS One. 2019; 14(4):e0215218. Dolor A, Sampson SL, Lazar AA, Lotz JC, Szoka FC, Fields AJ. PMID: 30970007.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:HumansCells
    7. Nutrient supply and nucleus pulposus cell function: effects of the transport properties of the cartilage endplate and potential implications for intradiscal biologic therapy. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2019 06; 27(6):956-964. Wong J, Sampson SL, Bell-Briones H, Ouyang A, Lazar AA, Lotz JC, Fields AJ. PMID: 30721733.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    
    8. Associations between vertebral body fat fraction and intervertebral disc biochemical composition as assessed by quantitative MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging. 2019 10; 50(4):1219-1226. Krug R, Joseph GB, Han M, Fields A, Cheung J, Mundada M, Bailey J, Rochette A, Ballatori A, McCulloch CE, McCormick Z, O'Neill C, Link TM, Lotz J. PMID: 30701594.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    9. Estrogen signaling in arcuate Kiss1 neurons suppresses a sex-dependent female circuit promoting dense strong bones. Nat Commun. 2019 01 11; 10(1):163. Herber CB, Krause WC, Wang L, Bayrer JR, Li A, Schmitz M, Fields A, Ford B, Zhang Z, Reid MS, Nomura DK, Nissenson RA, Correa SM, Ingraham HA. PMID: 30635563.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    10. Effects of dynamic loading on solute transport through the human cartilage endplate. J Biomech. 2019 01 23; 83:273-279. Sampson SL, Sylvia M, Fields AJ. PMID: 30554819.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    11. Contribution of the endplates to disc degeneration. Curr Mol Biol Rep. 2018 Dec; 4(4):151-160. Fields AJ, Ballatori A, Liebenberg EC, Lotz JC. PMID: 30546999.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    12. Tidemark Avulsions are a Predominant Form of Endplate Irregularity. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2018 08; 43(16):1095-1101. Berg-Johansen B, Jain D, Liebenberg EC, Fields AJ, Link TM, O'Neill CW, Lotz JC. PMID: 29315127.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    13. FGF and TGFß signaling link form and function during jaw development and evolution. Dev Biol. 2018 12 01; 444 Suppl 1:S219-S236. Woronowicz KC, Gline SE, Herfat ST, Fields AJ, Schneider RA. PMID: 29753626.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    14. Cartilage Endplate Thickness Variation Measured by Ultrashort Echo-Time MRI Is Associated With Adjacent Disc Degeneration. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2018 05 15; 43(10):E592-E600. Berg-Johansen B, Han M, Fields AJ, Liebenberg EC, Lim BJ, Larson PE, Gunduz-Demir C, Kazakia GJ, Krug R, Lotz JC. PMID: 28984733.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 5     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    15. Publication trends in spine research from 2007 to 2016: Comparison of the Orthopaedic Research Society Spine Section and the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine. JOR Spine. 2018 Mar; 1(1):e1006. Martin JT, Gullbrand SE, Fields AJ, Purmessur D, Diwan AD, Oxland TR, Chiba K, Guilak F, Hoyland JA, Iatridis JC. PMID: 29770804.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    16. Larger vertebral endplate concavities cause higher failure load and work at failure under high-rate impact loading of rabbit spinal explants. J Mech Behav Biomed Mater. 2018 04; 80:104-110. Dudli S, Enns-Bray W, Pauchard Y, Römmeler A, Fields AJ, Ferguson SJ, Helgason B. PMID: 29414464.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    17. Contributions of Material Properties and Structure to Increased Bone Fragility for a Given Bone Mass in the UCD-T2DM Rat Model of Type 2 Diabetes. J Bone Miner Res. 2018 06; 33(6):1066-1075. Acevedo C, Sylvia M, Schaible E, Graham JL, Stanhope KL, Metz LN, Gludovatz B, Schwartz AV, Ritchie RO, Alliston TN, Havel PJ, Fields AJ. PMID: 29342321.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    18. Structure-function relationships at the human spinal disc-vertebra interface. J Orthop Res. 2018 01; 36(1):192-201. Berg-Johansen B, Fields AJ, Liebenberg EC, Li A, Lotz JC. PMID: 28590060.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    19. Role of Osteoblast Gi Signaling in Age-Related Bone Loss in Female Mice. Endocrinology. 2017 06 01; 158(6):1715-1726. Millard SM, Wang L, Wattanachanya L, O'Carroll D, Fields AJ, Pang J, Kazakia G, Lotz JC, Nissenson RA. PMID: 28407060.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    20. Glucocorticoid suppression of osteocyte perilacunar remodeling is associated with subchondral bone degeneration in osteonecrosis. Sci Rep. 2017 03 22; 7:44618. Fowler TW, Acevedo C, Mazur CM, Hall-Glenn F, Fields AJ, Bale HA, Ritchie RO, Lotz JC, Vail TP, Alliston T. PMID: 28327602.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 12     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    21. Pathobiology of Modic changes. Eur Spine J. 2016 11; 25(11):3723-3734. Dudli S, Fields AJ, Samartzis D, Karppinen J, Lotz JC. PMID: 26914098.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 30     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    22. Theoretical effects of fully ductile versus fully brittle behaviors of bone tissue on the strength of the human proximal femur and vertebral body. J Biomech. 2015 May 01; 48(7):1264-9. Nawathe S, Yang H, Fields AJ, Bouxsein ML, Keaveny TM. PMID: 25828400.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    23. Alterations in intervertebral disc composition, matrix homeostasis and biomechanical behavior in the UCD-T2DM rat model of type 2 diabetes. J Orthop Res. 2015 May; 33(5):738-46. Fields AJ, Berg-Johansen B, Metz LN, Miller S, La B, Liebenberg EC, Coughlin DG, Graham JL, Stanhope KL, Havel PJ, Lotz JC. PMID: 25641259.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 18     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    24. Trabecular plates and rods determine elastic modulus and yield strength of human trabecular bone. Bone. 2015 Mar; 72:71-80. Wang J, Zhou B, Liu XS, Fields AJ, Sanyal A, Shi X, Adams M, Keaveny TM, Guo XE. PMID: 25460571.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 14     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    25. Cartilaginous end plates: Quantitative MR imaging with very short echo times-orientation dependence and correlation with biochemical composition. Radiology. 2015 Feb; 274(2):482-9. Fields AJ, Han M, Krug R, Lotz JC. PMID: 25302832.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 19     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    26. Comparison of vertebral and intervertebral disc lesions in aging humans and rhesus monkeys. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2014 Jul; 22(7):980-5. Bailey JF, Fields AJ, Liebenberg E, Mattison JA, Lotz JC, Kramer PA. PMID: 24821664.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 5     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimals
    27. Structural parameters determining the strength of the porcine vertebral body affected by tumours. Comput Methods Biomech Biomed Engin. 2015; 18(8):890-9. Sahli F, Cuellar J, Pérez A, Fields AJ, Campos M, Ramos-Grez J. PMID: 24460089.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimals
    28. Dependence of mechanical properties of trabecular bone on plate-rod microstructure determined by individual trabecula segmentation (ITS). J Biomech. 2014 Feb 07; 47(3):702-8. Zhou B, Liu XS, Wang J, Lu XL, Fields AJ, Guo XE. PMID: 24360196.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 18     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    29. Influence of biochemical composition on endplate cartilage tensile properties in the human lumbar spine. J Orthop Res. 2014 Feb; 32(2):245-52. Fields AJ, Rodriguez D, Gary KN, Liebenberg EC, Lotz JC. PMID: 24273192.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    30. Innervation of pathologies in the lumbar vertebral end plate and intervertebral disc. Spine J. 2014 Mar 01; 14(3):513-21. Fields AJ, Liebenberg EC, Lotz JC. PMID: 24139753.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 27     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    31. The role of the vertebral end plate in low back pain. Global Spine J. 2013 Jun; 3(3):153-64. Lotz JC, Fields AJ, Liebenberg EC. PMID: 24436866.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    32. Seeing double: a comparison of microstructure, biomechanical function, and adjacent disc health between double- and single-layer vertebral endplates. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2012 Oct 01; 37(21):E1310-7. Fields AJ, Sahli F, Rodriguez AG, Lotz JC. PMID: 22781006.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    33. Vertebral fragility and structural redundancy. J Bone Miner Res. 2012 Oct; 27(10):2152-8. Fields AJ, Nawathe S, Eswaran SK, Jekir MG, Adams MF, Papadopoulos P, Keaveny TM. PMID: 22623120.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 7     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    34. Micromechanics of the human vertebral body for forward flexion. J Biomech. 2012 Aug 09; 45(12):2142-8. Yang H, Nawathe S, Fields AJ, Keaveny TM. PMID: 22704826.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    35. Trabecular architecture and vertebral fragility in osteoporosis. Curr Osteoporos Rep. 2012 Jun; 10(2):132-40. Fields AJ, Keaveny TM. PMID: 22492119.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    36. Influence of vertical trabeculae on the compressive strength of the human vertebra. J Bone Miner Res. 2011 Feb; 26(2):263-9. Fields AJ, Lee GL, Liu XS, Jekir MG, Guo XE, Keaveny TM. PMID: 20715186.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 18     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    37. Mechanisms of initial endplate failure in the human vertebral body. J Biomech. 2010 Dec 01; 43(16):3126-31. Fields AJ, Lee GL, Keaveny TM. PMID: 20817162.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 16     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    38. Role of trabecular microarchitecture in whole-vertebral body biomechanical behavior. J Bone Miner Res. 2009 Sep; 24(9):1523-30. Fields AJ, Eswaran SK, Jekir MG, Keaveny TM. PMID: 19338454.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 30     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    39. Multi-scale modeling of the human vertebral body: comparison of micro-CT based high-resolution and continuum-level models. Pac Symp Biocomput. 2009; 293-303. Eswaran SK, Fields AJ, Nagarathnam P, Keaveny TM. PMID: 19209709.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    40. Effects of knee simulator loading and alignment variability on predicted implant mechanics: a probabilistic study. J Orthop Res. 2006 Dec; 24(12):2212-21. Laz PJ, Pal S, Fields A, Petrella AJ, Rullkoetter PJ. PMID: 17004268.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:Humans
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