DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROIMAGING LAB - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Masters Student, Medical Sciences
I am a second-year undergraduate student in Health Sciences at the University of Calgary. My project focuses on identifying resting state functional networks and inter-network connectivity in infants and relating the findings to measures of maternal mental health reported during pregnancy. In my spare time, I love playing basketball, spending time with my friends and family, and travelling!
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor Department of Radiology University of Calgary
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor Department of Paediatrics University of Calgary
Job Titles:
- Professor Department of Radiology University of Calgary
I am fascinated by the brain and neuroscience. During my PhD, I used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study the adolescent brain and how we learn to read. I've also found other opportunities to use brain recordings and brain stimulation methods to study the brain. Now, I'm using my broad background to support the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab's research program, teach new students, and get the kids that participate in our research excited about the brain!
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor Werklund School of Education University of Calgary
Job Titles:
- Graduate Student, Neuroscience Program
Job Titles:
- Professor Department of Paediatrics University of Calgary
My research uses magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study brain development in children and adolescents. Using a variety of MRI techniques, I study how brain structure and function change with age, or in response to treatments and interventions. I am specifically interested in how brain maturation and brain plasticity are related to cognition and behaviour, and how these relationships may be different in children with developmental disorders. The aim of my research is to better understand brain changes, with the ultimate goal of providing earlier identification and more effective treatments for children with developmental disorders.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor Department of Paediatrics University of Calgary
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- Undergraduate Summer Student
Job Titles:
- Masters Student, Biomedical Engineering
I recently graduated with my BSc (Hons) in neuroscience from UCalgary. I am now completing my MSc in biomedical engineering in the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab. My project uses three imaging modalities to investigate mismatches between the typical developmental rates of brain regions. When I'm not in the lab, you can find me consuming an excessive amount of lattes, working at the Alberta Children's Hospital, or posting on my book blog.
I am a Toronto-based researcher affiliated with the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab. My doctoral research examined mathematical modeling approaches to studying brain microstructure with diffusion MRI. With the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab, I am applying my analytical background to tackle questions related to adolescent brain development. I am particularly interested in the puzzle of why the brain's cortical gray matter seems to shrink during adolescence. I am investigating whether the adolescent brain's gray and white matter trajectories are coordinated in a region-dependent manner, in pursuit of devising a holistic model of how the brain changes during this period.
I am the newest research assistant in Dr. Lebel's lab. I was born and raised in Northern Canada but now call Calgary home. I have a BSc in Biological Sciences and BA in Psychology from the University of Calgary. I spent the last few years working in a clinical psychology practice in the city. My focus is the Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Childhood Mental Health research. I enjoy every opportunity to help with MRI scans and cognitive assessments. And my favourite part about the job is connecting with our fantastic participants!
I am a postdoctoral fellow in the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab. I completed by PhD in the Department of Medical Biophysics, Western University under the supervision of Dr. Ravi S. Menon at the Centre for Functional and Metabolic Mapping at the Robarts Research Institute where I investigated the longitudinal effects of sports-related concussions and impacts. With Dr. Catherine Lebel I aim to explore the development of the young brain using multi-parametric MRI techniques combined with data-driven image analysis approaches. By relating these signatures of brain development with comprehensive clinical scores we aim to isolate differential trajectories that underlie compromised health and disease.
Job Titles:
- Graduate Student, Neuroscience Program
I am a PhD student in the Neuroscience program and I use structural MRI to map trajectories of brain development in typically developing children and those prenatally exposed to alcohol. Before coming to Calgary, I received B.S. in Psychology from the University of Oregon and completed my M.Sc. thesis in Developmental Psychology jointly between Leiden University in the Netherlands and the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognition and Brain Science in Leipzig, Germany. Outside of work, you can find me working in my garden or running mountain trails with my dog.
Though I graduated with a Commerce degree, I have high interests in the psychology and neurology department. I also enjoy working with kids as my current research focus is cognitive development in children.
I joined the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab as a postdoctoral fellow in 2021 after completing my PhD in Psychological Sciences at the University of Connecticut. My dissertation research focused on how the structure, function, and chemistry of the brain relate to reading ability in children. In my current research with Dr. Lebel, I aim to apply advanced neuroimaging techniques in multiple modalities to characterize links between specific properties of brain structure and reading ability. I will also examine patterns of brain development in the preschool and early school years as they relate to the acquisition of reading and related skills. Outside the lab, I enjoy exploring the mountains with my family, running, baking and knitting.
Job Titles:
- Student, Neuroscience Program
Job Titles:
- Graduate Student, Medical Neuroscience Program
Job Titles:
- Masters Student, Medical Sciences
Sam's research explores the relationship between positive parent-child interactions and healthy brain development in infants. Specifically, she is interested in the structural and emotional qualities of parenting and their contribution to optimal white matter connectivity. Sam hopes that the findings of this project may lead to early interventions to help improve parent-child relationships, to optimize brain development in children.
Job Titles:
- Undergraduate Summer Student
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor Department of Radiology University of Calgary
I began my postdoc training in the Developmental Neuroimaging Lab then became a research associate in this lab. I finished my Ph.D. in neuroscience at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Germany. My research is focusing on the implementation of resting-state fMRI and diffusion tensor imaging on the brain development in preschool children and children with prenatal alcohol exposure, as well as infants who were born during pandemic. Besides work I am a fan of sci-fi movies and badminton.