CSci, FIPEM
Emeritus Professor
- About
-
- Email Address
- r.aspden@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 437445
- School/Department
- School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition
Biography
After obtaining a first class honours in Physics from the University of York I moved across the Pennines to do a PhD in Medical Biophysics at the University of Manchester under Professor David W.L. Hukins. I developed methods using x-ray diffraction and polarised light to measure collagen fibril organization in connective tissues. I applied these first to articular cartilage and subsequently used them on tissues such as ligaments, intervertebral disc, meniscus and uterine cervix. In Manchester we used one of the earliest clinical MRI scanners (Picker 0.1 T) to study knees and spines. From this I developed the arch model of the spine to address the question of how a curved, flexible structure can support loads. I was awarded a Wellcome Trust Travelling Fellowship to work with Professor Dick Heinegård in the Department of Physiological Chemistry at the University of Lund, Sweden. There I learnt some biology in order to study how biological and mechanical factors are inter-related. On returning to the UK I moved to Aberdeen and set up the Orthopaedic Research Laboratories. In 1992, I was awarded an MRC Senior Fellowship, and this was renewed in 1997. I was appointed to a personal chair as Professor in Orthopaedic Science in 2000 and became Emeritus Professor of Orthopaedic Science in 2016.
Research results are published in nearly 200 peer-reviewed papers and I have been an investigator on grants awarded for research totalling over £25M from Research Councils, Charities and Industry.
Qualifications
- BA(Hons) Physics1977 - University of York
1st class honours
- PhD Medical Biophysics1981 - University of Manchester
- DSc Musculoskeletal science1997 - University of Aberdeen
From molecules to mechanics: the molecular organisation, mechanical behaviour and biological function of connective tissues.
External Memberships
Member of the Society for Back Pain Research. Honorary Secretary 1993-1995.
Member of the British Society for Matrix Biology (formerly the British Connective Tissue Society.)
Member of the Osteoarthritis Research Society International
Member of the European Society of Biomechanics
Latest Publications
The genetic architecture of hip shape and its role in the development of hip osteoarthritis and fracture
Human Molecular GeneticsContributions to Journals: ArticlesDual-energy X-ray absorptiometry derived knee shape may provide a useful imaging biomarker for predicting total knee replacement: findings from a study of 37,843 people in UK Biobank.
Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Open, vol. 6, no. 2, 100468Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAssociations between life course longitudinal growth and hip shapes at ages 60 to 64 years: evidence from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development
RMD Open, vol. 10, no. 2Contributions to Journals: ArticlesFemoral Neck Width Genetic Risk Score is A Novel Independent Risk Factor for Hip Fractures
Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 241–251Contributions to Journals: ArticlesComparison between UK Biobank and Shanghai Changfeng suggests distinct hip morphology may contribute to ethnic differences in the prevalence of hip osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis and CartilageContributions to Journals: Articles
Prizes and Awards
Wellcome Travelling Fellowship, December 1987.
Medical Research Council Senior Fellowship, October 1992.
Medical Research Council Senior Fellowship, renewed October 1997.
Fellow of the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine, April 1998.
Personal Chair by University of Aberdeen, October 2000.
Chartered Scientist, May 2004.
BackCare Medal 2014, Society for Back Pain Research
- Research
-
Research Overview
Some significant findings
Quantifying the organisation of collagen within soft and hard connective tissues using x-ray and neutron diffraction and polarized light microscopy.
Quantified the hypomineralization and hyperplasia of bone in osteoarthritis
Hypothesised that osteoarthritis is not a cartilage disorder but may be a systemic disorder involving lipid metabolism and that hyperplasia of tissues with a mesenchymal origin is a characteristic feature.
We showed that chondrocytes in elderly human articular cartilage do not increase their biosynthetic activity when subjected to cyclic loading although they do increase their expression of mRNA for anabolic factors. This behaviour is not replicated by animal models.
Finite element modelling of the meniscus showed that compressive loading results in the development of strains in the tissue corresponding to the commonly observed pathological tears. The flatter the triangular cross-section the more likely a longitudinal tear hence the increased risk to the postero-medial meniscus.
Statistical shape modelling (SSM) provides a quantitative measure of joint shape and has been used to quantify joint shapes in spines, hips, knees, ankles and feet. We have shown these shapes are associated with developmental and genetic factors and SSM can be used as an imaging biomarker for joint disorders.
Biomechanical models based on an arch and an inverted pendulum can explain how the curved flexible nature of the human spine gives it a mechanical advantage and enables controlled movement.
We each have an intrinsic shape to our lumbar spines, which is detectable throughout flexion and extension. This shape affects the way we lift weights from the floor: those with straight spines prefer to squat to lift while those with curvier spines prefer to stoop
Published papers
My recent publications appear through the University of Aberdeen system but if you want to see what I have published throughout my career then details may be found through ResearchGate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Richard_Aspden
or Scopus
https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=7006543316
or Google Scholar
https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=MKuey98AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Current Research
Statistical shape modelling of DXA images of hips, knees and spines from the UK Biobank, jointly with colleagues from Manchester and Bristol.
Collaborations
Dr Amanda Nelson (University of North Carolina).
Statistical Shape Modelling (SSM) of the Johnstone County osteoarthritis cohort
Professor Jon Tobias (University of Bristol)
Dr Celia Gregson (University of Bristol)
Dr Emma Clark (University of Bristol)
SSM of images from the ALSPAC cohort, a High Bone Mass cohort and most recently the UK Biobank images with Manchester, Southampton and Cardiff.
Professor Diana Kuh (UCL) and the NSHD team
SSM of the DXA images of hips and spines from the National Survey of Health and Development
Professor Graeme Jones (University of Tasmania)
SSM of hips from the TASOAC cohort
Professor Marian Hannan (Harvard University)
US member of a consortium led by Jon Tobias in which we use SSM and perform a GWAS study of numerous osteoarthritis cohorts worldwide for genetic determinants of hip shape
Prof Tim Cootes (University of Manchester)
Working with us and Jon Tobias to develop a high-throughput version of SSM in order to analyse the hip, knee and spine images from 100,000 individuals in the UK Biobank
Professor David Deehan (University of Newcastle)
Measurement of bone properties in the acetabulum in regard to uncemented acetabular replacement
Dr Karen Hind (Durham University)
Spinal injuries in international Rugby players
Professor Alison McGregor, (Imperial College London)
Spinal shape related to disc degeneration
Dr Mandy Plumb (Federation University Australia)
FGF18 and mechanical regulation of articular cartilage
Dr Jude Meakin (University of Exeter)
Spinal biomechanics
Dr Rachel White (University of Central Lancashire)
Regulation of intracellular pH and the role of NHERF1 in cellular proliferation
Supervision
Twenty-one students have successfully completed their PhD studies under my supervision.
Funding and Grants
Currently an investigator on a grant for £1.6M from the Wellcome Trust led by Jon Tobias in Bristol to analyse the UK Biobank DXA images of hips, knees and spines.
- Publications
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Page 1 of 15 Results 1 to 10 of 144
The genetic architecture of hip shape and its role in the development of hip osteoarthritis and fracture
Human Molecular GeneticsContributions to Journals: ArticlesDual-energy X-ray absorptiometry derived knee shape may provide a useful imaging biomarker for predicting total knee replacement: findings from a study of 37,843 people in UK Biobank.
Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Open, vol. 6, no. 2, 100468Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAssociations between life course longitudinal growth and hip shapes at ages 60 to 64 years: evidence from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development
RMD Open, vol. 10, no. 2Contributions to Journals: ArticlesFemoral Neck Width Genetic Risk Score is A Novel Independent Risk Factor for Hip Fractures
Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 241–251Contributions to Journals: ArticlesComparison between UK Biobank and Shanghai Changfeng suggests distinct hip morphology may contribute to ethnic differences in the prevalence of hip osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis and CartilageContributions to Journals: ArticlesThe identification of distinct protective and susceptibility mechanisms for hip osteoarthritis: findings from a genome-wide association study meta-analysis of minimum joint space width and Mendelian randomisation cluster analyses
EBioMedicine, vol. 95, 104759Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA GWAS meta-analysis of alpha angle suggests cam-type morphology may be a specific feature of hip osteoarthritis in older adults
Arthritis & Rheumatology, vol. 75, no. 6, pp. 900-909Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA novel semi-automated classifier of hip osteoarthritis on DXA images shows expected relationships with clinical outcomes in UK Biobank
Rheumatology, vol. 61, no. 9, pp. 3586–3595Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMachine-learning derived acetabular dysplasia and cam morphology are features of severe hip osteoarthritis: findings from UK Biobank
Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, vol. 37, no. 9, pp. 1720-1732Contributions to Journals: ArticlesWalking on water: revisiting the role of water in articular cartilage biomechanics in relation to tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
Journal of the Royal Society Interface, vol. 19, no. 193, 20220364Contributions to Journals: Articles