Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Research focus

Cellular biomechanics, molecular and cellular biophysics of muscle function, cardiovascular disease

Education

Ph.D. Bioengineering, University of Washington, 2018
M.S. Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, 2013
B.S. Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, 2012
B.S. Physics, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 2012

Joe Powers joined Mechanical Engineering and Laboratory Medicine & Pathology this May as an assistant professor. Before coming to the UW, Powers conducted postdoctoral studies at the University of California San Diego, where he focused on understanding the mechanisms that lead to heart failure in patients with genetic conditions that alter the shape and size of their heart muscle cells.

Powers' research focuses on the molecular and cellular biophysics of muscle function, with an emphasis on mechanisms of various forms of heart disease. In the Powers Lab, this research is refined through an exploration of multi-scale biomechanics, mechanobiology and biological structure. His honors include the National Institute of Health Pathway to Independence Award and the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award.