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Principal Investigator
Principal Investigator
Claire Acevedo, PhD
Claire Acevedo, PhD
Claire Acevedo is a Associate Professor in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) department. Dr. Acevedo's research concentrates on the mechanical behavior of skeletal tissues and their biological responses to aging and metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. Her studies span from the cellular level to millimeter-length scales, utilizing advanced multiscale experiments. Her work has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the Harold M. Frost Young Investigator Award (ASBMR, 2017), the John Haddad Young Investigator Award (ASBMR, 2018), the NSF Career Award in 2021, and the Alice Jee Award (ORS, 2022).
After earning her PhD at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), Prof. Acevedo secured both early and advanced postdoctoral fellowships, enabling her to conduct research at UC Berkeley and later at UC San Francisco. In 2018, she established her own research laboratory, the Fracture and Fatigue of Skeletal Tissues Lab, at the University of Utah. In August 2023, she was hired at UC San Diego.
Email: csacevedo@ucsd.edu
Graduate Students
Graduate Students
In Kyu Lee
In Kyu Lee
In Kyu Lee is a doctoral student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego. He earned B.S. in Aerospace Engineering and completed M.S. in Bioengineering at the University of Kansas, where he focused on medical imaging and CFD. With professional experience in the medical AI industry, he integrates deep learning and quantitative analysis of medical imaging to study microstructure and bone diseases. Outside of his academic pursuits, In Kyu enjoys playing basketball, tennis, and the piano.
Email: kl002@ucsd.edu
Rachel McClow
Rachel McClow
Rachel McClow is a doctoral student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UC San Diego. She earned her B.S in Mechanical Engineering at the same university, and her undergraduate research experience with prosthetics and machine learning inspired her to continue her studies but in a new avenue: the musculoskeletal system under sustained micro gravitational loading. Outside of her studies, Rachel enjoys making ceramics, baking, and aerial silks.
Email: rmcclow@ucsd.edu
Alyssa Shen
Alyssa Shen
Alyssa Shen is a Master’s student in the Bioengineering department at the University of California, San Diego. She earned her B.S in Bioengineering at the University of California, Riverside in 2025. Inspired by innovations that help people overcome physical limitations, Alyssa continues to explore the intersection of engineering, medicine, and human resilience. Guided by her scientific interests, she focuses on investigating bone diseases, with the aim of advancing our understanding of these debilitating conditions and developing better strategies for their prevention and treatment. In her free time, she enjoys dancing hula and salsa, reading, and spending time outdoors with family and friends.
Email: als048@ucsd.edu
Anushka Sarode
Anushka Sarode
Anushka Sarode is a Master's student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego. She earned her B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Washington. With nearly seven years of research experience in materials characterization and experimental mechanics, she joined the F2 Lab in Fall 2026 to study fracture mechanics in hydrated skeletal tissue. She is passionate about scientific story-telling and enjoys climbing, camping, and swimming in her free time.
Email: ansarode@ucsd.edu
Pouya Rassouli
Pouya Rassouli
Pouya is a first year master's student. He earned his B.S. in Bioengineering from UCSD in 2024. He took a gap year and worked with spine biologics and hydrogels before returning to UCSD. His experiences have inspired him to understand more about bone structure and mechanics, how disease may affect these, and eventually he wants to contribute to biomaterials development for hard and soft tissue applications. In his free time, he is at the Muay Thai gym, watching soccer, or laying at the beach.
Email: prassouli@ucsd.edu
Undergraduate Students
Undergraduate Students
Vivian Quach
Vivian Quach
Vivian Quach is an undergraduate Bioengineering student at the University of California, San Diego, joining the F² Skeletal Tissue Lab in October 2024. She joined the lab to build new laboratory skills and deepen her understanding of biomechanics, with hopes of pursuing a Master’s in Bioengineering. Vivian is excited to connect her interests in biology and mechanical engineering through hands-on research. Outside the lab, she enjoys exploring new coffee shops, going to the gym, playing volleyball, and traveling with friends.
Email: v2quach@ucsd.edu
Austin Lund
Austin Lund
Austin Lund is a second-year undergraduate researcher at the University of California, San Diego, majoring in Biophysics. He joined the F2 Lab in April 2025 under the supervision of In Kyu, contributing to the lab’s work on bone image segmentation. Austin’s academic interests stem from a broader curiosity about the intersection of physics and medicine, with an interest in how physics principles can inform the development of medical technologies. Outside of the lab, he enjoys playing volleyball—having competed at the club level in high school and now as a member of UC San Diego’s club team.
Email: aulund@ucsd.edu
Ethan Huang
Ethan Huang
Ethan Huang is a first-year undergraduate at UC San Diego majoring in Artificial Intelligence with a minor in Mathematics. A research assistant in the F² Lab since February 2026, he focuses on applying computer vision and U-Net architectures to biological image segmentation. He finds an interest in how AI can bridge many different fields to help solve multi-faceted problems. When not inside the lab, Ethan enjoys playing the viola in the chamber orchestra and exploring San Diego's diverse food scene.
Email: eyh002@ucsd.edu
Former Students
Former Students
William Woolley, PhD (Graduate research assistant, Fall 2019 - Summer 2025), currently postdoc at UT Austin
Yoshihiro Obata, PhD (Graduate research assistant, Fall 2019 - Spring 2025), currently at GE healthcare
Hilma Bettinger, MS (Visiting Master's student, Fall 2024 - Summer 2025)
Naomi Chin, MS (Master's student, Fall 2023 - Fall 2024)
Selma Baalache, MS (Thesis Master's intern, Spring 2024 - Summer 2024)
Louis Grodman, MEng (Medical research intern, Winter 2024 - Summer 2024)
Akarsh Srivastava, MS (Graduate research intern, Fall 2023 - Summer 2024)
James Rosenberg, PhD (Graduate research assistant, Fall 2018 - Spring 2024), currently at InnoSys
Michael Sieverts, PhD (Graduate research assistant, Fall 2019 - Fall 2023), currently at GE healthcare
Ihsan Elnunu, PhD (Thesis Master's student, Fall 2021 - Fall 2023), currently at AES
Ishita Juluru (Undergraduate research assistant, Spring 2022 - 2023)
Jessica Redmond (Undergraduate research assistant, Spring 2022 - Spring 2023)
Kalina Manova (Undergraduate research assistant, Spring 2023, Summer 2023)
Nikita Rabbitt (Undergraduate research assistant, Spring 2022)
Yiming Lu (Undergrad research assistant, Spring 2022)
Abigail Anderson (Undergrad research assistant, Spring 2022)
Lily Kim, BS (UROP scholar, Fall 2019, Spring 2020)
Justin Joseph Schofield (Undergrad research assistant, Spring 2019)
Charles Luke Nelson (UROP scholar Fall 2019, Spring 2019)
Clement Simon (Summer intern, Summer 2018)
Julia Dominesey (Undergrad research assistant, Summer 2018)
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