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Diane Gregory

Diane Gregory

Associate Professor

Research / Areas of Expertise

Biomechanics
Spine health
Ergonomics

I received my MSc (2005) and PhD (2009) in Biomechanics from the University of Waterloo.

Prior to joining Laurier in 2011, I was a postdoctoral fellow cross appointed in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the Department of Bioengineering at the University of California-San Diego.

My research is in the area of biomechanics, specifically musculoskeletal spine health and low back pain. Of particular interest is the intervertebral disc: the soft tissue between each of the vertebrae. These discs can become injured as a result of trauma, or gradually as a result of overuse, and the way in which they become damaged changes as we age. My main interests lie in understanding disc herniation and disc degeneration.

Using a tissue-based (in vitro) and human-based (in vivo) approach, my research address questions such as:

How does the spine become injured?
What specific things do we do that increase our risk?
How can we prevent or rehabilitate these injuries?

Laurier Early Career Researcher Award (2019)
Ontario Early Researcher Award (2018)
John Charles Polanyi Prize for Physical and Medicine (2013).
International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine Prize for Lumbar Spine Research (2011).

Undergraduate research positions (volunteer, directed studies, or 4th-year thesis) are now full for the 2025–2026 academic year.

If you are interested in pursuing graduate studies (MSc or PhD), please feel free to contact me for more information.

Neptune A, McMorran JG, Gregory, DE. How Static and Cyclic Loading Affect the Mechanical Properties of the Annulus Fibrosus. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering. 146(11):114503. 2024.

McMorran JG, Neptune A, Gregory DE. Mechanical consequences to the annulus fibrosus following rapid internal pressurization and endplate fracture under restrained-expansion conditions. Medical and Engineering Physics. 130:104194. 2024.

Briar KJ, Gregory DE. Combined flexion and compression negatively impacts the mechanical integrity of the annulus fibrous. European Spine Journal. 32(3):831-838. 2023.

Whittal, MC, Poynter SJ, Samms K, Briar KJ, Sinopoli SI, Millecamps M, Stone LS, DeWitte-Orr SJ, Gregory DE. TAK-242 treatment and its effect on mechanical properties and gene expression associated with IVD degeneration in SPARC-null mice. European Spine Journal. 31(10):2801-2811. 2022.

Sinopoli, SI, Gregory, DE. A novel testing method to quantify mechanical properties of the intact annulus fibrosus ring from rat-tail intervertebral discs. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering. 144(11):114503. 2022.

Chow N, McMorran JG, Gregory DE. Examining the protective role of the posterior elements of the spine against endplate fractures in a porcine model. European Spine Journal. 31(6):1501-1507. 2022.

Briar KJ, McMorran JG, Gregory DE. Delamination of the annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc: using a bovine tail model to examine effect of separation rate. Frontiers in Bioengineering. 10:883268. 2022.

Molladavoodi, S, Dewitte-Orr, SJ, Gregory, DE. An In Vitro 3D Annulus Fibrosus Cell Culture Model with Type I Collagen: An Examination of Cell-Matrix Interactions. JOR Spine. 5(1): e1193. 2022.