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Dr. Komarova鈥檚 research program is aimed at understanding the regulation of osteoclasts, the cells responsible for bone destruction in diseases such as osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, periodontitis and bone metastases. Osteoclasts are highly active cells, present in bone only in small numbers. Moreover, osteoclasts are terminally differentiated, and therefore do not proliferate in culture. To understand the mechanisms that determine stimulus-specific gene expression in osteoclasts, Dr. Komarova鈥檚 laboratory employs high-speed imaging of live cells, quantitative gene expression analysis, as well as mathematical modeling. These studies will provide new insights into the control of bone resorption in health and disease, which may lead to the development of new therapies for treatment of inflammatory, metabolic and metastatic bone disorders. Dr. Komarova completed a M.Sc. degree in physics at the Moscow State University, Russia, and obtained a Ph.D. degree in biophysics in 1996 from the Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Pushchino, Russia. Before joining the Faculty of Dentistry, Dr. Komarova completed postdoctoral training at NASA Ames Research Center, and in the CIHR Group in Skeletal Development and Remodeling, The University of Western Ontario.