Lab Director
Craig P. McGowan, PhD
Associate Professor
Director, PhD Program in Integrative Anatomical Sciences
Research Associate in Mammalogy, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences
Keck School of Medicine, BMT 303
University of Southern California
Office phone: 323.442.9804
Email: cmcgowan@usc.edu
Dr. McGowan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Prior to joining USC, he spent ten years in the Department of Biological Sciences and the WWAMI Medical Education Program at the University of Idaho. He received his PhD in Biology from Harvard University and was an NIH NRSA Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Integrated Physiology at the University of Colorado, Boulder and the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas, Austin.
Dr. McGowan’s research program seeks to understand the relationships between musculoskeletal morphology and the biomechanics of locomotor performance. His research team addresses questions geared towards understanding the in-vivo dynamics of individual muscles, the influence of musculoskeletal architecture on muscle function, and the links between limb morphology, whole body locomotor performance and habitat utilization. Using a comparative approach, he integrates a number of research techniques including in-vivo muscle-tendon measurements, musculoskeletal modeling and computer simulation, whole body physiology and biomechanics, and measurements of performance and habitat use in the field to examine how humans and other animals maneuver through their natural environments.
Postdoctoral Fellows
Jordan Cannon, PhD
Postdoctoral Scholar
Dr. Cannon is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He received his PhD in Biokinesiology from the University of Southern California and his MSc and BSc in Kinesiology (Biomechanics) from the University of Waterloo.
Dr. Cannon’s research focusses on the neuromuscular control and modulation of multi-joint dynamics during whole-body movements. His research aims to understand the relationships between muscle function and coordination, musculoskeletal system dynamics, and subject-specific characteristics; to elucidate how they interact to influence normal, pathological, and high-performing musculoskeletal function. To do so, he integrates experimental testing and imaging with computational modelling and simulation approaches to enable analyses across multiple levels of the neuromusculoskeletal system. His current work in the Comparative Neuromuscular Biomechanics Laboratory is investigating individual muscle contributions to high-powered jumping by kangaroo rats using predictive forward dynamics simulations.
Dr. Cannon will be starting a faculty position at the University of Waterloo in April 2024.
Graduate Students
Mary Pena
PhD Student
Mary is a PhD student in the department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine. She Received her B.S. in Exercise Science at the University of California-Irvine.
Mary is interested in understanding the mechanics and level of motor control that allow organisms to navigate complex environments. Her research experience during her undergraduate studies focused on steady-state locomotion on level terrain. Her current aim is to expand this understanding to more complex conditions that better represent how organisms encounter their environment. She is currently studying the mechanics of kangaroo rats hopping on uneven terrain.
Benjamin Pisarz
MS Student
Benjamin is a master’s student in the Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He received his bachelor’s in psychology from Virginia Commonwealth University.
After completing a year of physical therapy school, he gravitated towards the academic and research side. He then shifted his career path and came to USC. Benjamin’s interests include anatomical dissection and teaching. He is a part of the Comparative Neuromuscular Biomechanics Laboratory and enjoys learning about muscle physiology and the neuromuscular system. Benjamin’s goal is to become a professor in anatomy and physiology.
Lab Alumni
Jenny Aguilar
Raymond Bernal
Ariel Vieira