Meet one of our 2025 Fellowship recipients, Diana Alejandra Madrid Fuentes, MSc! Diana Madrid Fuentes’ journey in studying muscle health began in 2020 when she joined Dr. Ashley Weaver’s biomedical engineering lab as a Fulbright Scholar and master’s student from Honduras. There she worked on quantifying changes in lumbar and thigh muscle size and quality using computed tomography imaging for an NIH-funded weight loss and exercise trial in older adults. Her project was further supported by NASA, which used magnetic resonance imaging to assess changes in muscle size and intramuscular fat infiltration along the spine in response to long-duration space missions.

In the summer of 2021, Diana Madrid Fuentes met Dr. Araya Puwanant, whose enthusiasm for studying DM and commitment to understanding neurobiology through imaging biomarkers inspired her to enter the field. She has continued working with Dr. Puwanant on DM1 and DM2 projects, analyzing thigh and calf muscle fat fraction, contractile muscle volume, and masseter muscle volume.

Currently she is working on the project “Validating Muscle MRI as a Biomarker of Disease Status in DM2”. Diana Madrid Fuentes is committed to approaching the field with a fresh perspective and a dedication to advancing research and improving outcomes for DM patients and their families.

Click here to learn more about MDF's research funding opportunities and prior grant recipients.