Saiz Lab | Department of Orthopaedic Surgery | UC Davis Health

Maryam is doing her postdoctoral fellowship in orthopaedics and tissue engineering with Dr. Saiz. She did her undergraduate in Orthopaedic engineering and her Master’s in biomaterials and tissue engineering. She completed her PhD in bone tissue engineering at the University of Oslo, Norway, and the University of Giessen, Germany. She then did a fellowship at the University of Manchester, UK, on using nanofibers for angiogenesis and bone formation.

Outside the lab, Maryam enjoys kickboxing, swimming, running, hiking, and biking, which keep her physically active and mentally refreshed.

Matthew Frederickson is a resident physician in orthopaedic surgery at UC Davis. He was born in Sacramento and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. He received a bachelor of science in biology at UCLA and then completed medical school at the University of Cincinnati before returning home to California to complete his orthopaedic training at UC Davis. Matt is a big fan of football, rugby, and Australian rules football, and his research interests include orthopaedic trauma and sports medicine.

Reginald is an orthopaedic clinical research postdoctoral scholar in the Saiz Lab, with interests in trauma care, fracture healing, and the psychosocial impact of musculoskeletal injury. He completed medical school at Grodno State Medical University in Belarus and earned a master’s degree in Healthcare Ethics and Law from the University of Manchester in England. Before joining UC Davis, he worked within the NHS in the United Kingdom. Outside of medicine, he's a big sports fan and enjoys following soccer, football, and basketball.

Hamza is an immunology graduate student in the laboratory of Dr. Saiz, an orthopaedic trauma surgeon, where we investigate how immune responses following traumatic injury influence fracture healing outcomes. Supported by a K08 award, our work centers around clinical observations that patients with polytrauma experience significantly higher rates of fracture nonunion compared to those with isolated injuries. We characterize how the post-traumatic immune environment evolves dynamically across different injury patterns, with an additional focus on how MSC function is modulated in these settings. Our translational goal is to identify when, how, and in which patients to intervene immunologically in order to improve fracture healing and reduce nonunion rates in clinical practice. Outside the lab, Hamza enjoys basketball, snowboarding, and motorcycles.

Mandeep's research focuses on Orthopaedic trauma/polytrauma. His hobbies include weight lifting, hiking, and enjoying nature.

Tony's a medical student at California Northstate University. He's interested in the intersection between orthopaedic surgery and basic science research and has a passion for the field of surgery as a whole. Outside the lab, he enjoys going to the gym, reading, and fishing.

Charlie is a second-year undergraduate majoring in physiological science at UCLA. He joined Dr. Saiz's lab in February of 2025, and is currently working on a review paper about the role of mesenchymal stem cells in polytrauma in addition to projects in the lab relating to osteoporosis and the role of infection in polytrauma fracture healing. Outside of the lab, Charlie likes to run, go to the gym, read books, spend time outside, and root for Liverpool Football Club and the Sacramento Kings.

Alex is a UC Davis NPB major with research interests in chickens and bones. His hobbies include playing badminton, bouldering, baking, and fishing.

Saad is a UC Davis undergraduate student working in the lab on projects focused on fracture healing in polytrauma. Outside the lab, he enjoys watching and playing sports, playing video games, and reading.