Tendons rely on exercise to maintain tissue health, but repetitive overloading can cause tendinopathy, reduce tissue quality, and perturb homeostatic cellular processes. Current treatments focus on load management and often fail to address underlying cellular dysfunction, leaving the link between tendon cells and biomechanical cues unclear. In the Taylor Lab, we strain biomimetic scaffolds seeded with tendon-derived cells to create biomechanical in vitro models of healthy and diseased tendons to elucidate tissue maintenance responses. We also employ inclined treadmill running to induce Achilles tendinopathy in rats, providing in vivo models to assess pathological development. Across both approaches, we integrate age as a critical factor to understand its role in tendon health and disease.
