Contributors

Spring 2022

Shu’ayb Simmons

is a fi rst year MSc Candidate working with Dr. Tripathy at the CAMH Krembil Neuroinformatics Centre. Th eir research pertains to the neurobiological ramifi cations of racial disparity, aiming to elucidate the molecular basis of Black disparity in schizophrenia. Shu‘ayb enjoys active volunteering, social activism, fashion, and music production in their free time.

shuayb_neuro Serena Peck is a MSc student studying under the supervision of Dr. Paaladinesh Th avendiranathan. Her research looks at physical activity levels during cancer treatment and post-treatment cardiac function, cardiorespiratory fi tness, and quality of life in women with breast cancer. Serena loves being in nature and tending to her plants!

peck_s_s Carmen Li is a second year MSc student under the co-supervision of Dr. Th omas Eiwegger and Dr. Th eo Moraes at SickKids Hospital. Her work focuses on utilizing fl ow and mass cytometry to understand the immunological mechanisms of oral immunotherapy in food allergic children undergoing treatment. In her spare time, you can catch her baking or reading in a coff ee shop.

Noor al Kaabi is an MSc student working with Dr. Dmitry Rozenberg at Toronto General Hospital. Her research is focused on respiratory health, physical activity and quality of life in people with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders. Outside of research, she loves photography, digital art and is a certifi ed personal trainer.

noornotnour Laura Best is is a recent IMS alumni currently completing postdoctoral fellowships in addiction neuroimaging at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and child welfare with the FactorInwentash Faculty of Social Work at the University of Toronto. Laura is passionate about mental health and wellness, as a yoga instructor herself, and loves long walks with her pup!

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Nayaab Punjani

is a second year MSc student at IMS working with Dr. Michael G. Fehlings. Her research is examining a preclinical drug treatment that aims to provide a multifaceted approach targeting neural regeneration and infl ammation following cervical spinal cord injury. She enjoys watching action and mystery genre movies and TV shows, as well loves sketching in her free time.

Iciar Iturmendi

Sabater is a fi rst year PhD student working with Dr. Meng-Chuan Lai at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health. Her research focuses on understanding how people with autism spectrum disorder cover-up or mask their social and communication diff erences, a process known as ‘camoufl aging’. Iciar enjoys traveling, meeting new people and spending time with family and friends.

Elizabeth

Karvasarski is a MSc IMS student studying pulmonary hypertension at Mount Sinai Catheterization Laboratory under the supervision of Dr. Susanna Mak. Her research involves exploring whether the temporality of pulmonary vascular loading diff er with exercise in pre-capillary vs. post-capillary pulmonary hypertension. Outside of research, Elizabeth practices martial arts and is a 4th degree black belt.

Vaidhehi (Veena) Sanmugananthan

is a second year MSc student under the supervision of Dr. Karen Davis at the Krembil Brain Institute, Toronto Western Hospital. Her research focuses on examining pain and attention interactions in people that suff er chronic pain. Outside of the lab, Veena loves to run, play squash, sketch, and challenge herself to learn new art mediums!

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Bahar Golbon

is fi rst year MSc student investigating the diagnostic study and surgical management of primary hyperparathyroid patients under the supervision of Dr. Jesse Pasternak. In her free time, you can fi nd Bahar struggling to complete her millionth puzzle, and drinking coff ee!

BaharGolbon gol_99 Beatrice Ballarin is completing her PhD at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Medical Science and she is specializing in Cardiovascular Science. She is working under the co- supervision of Dr. Michael Tymianski and Dr. Michael Salter. Her research focuses on investigating the eff ect of a Nerinetide, a neuroprotectant drug, in promoting stroke recovery.

S. Hussain Ather

is a fi rst year PhD student working under John Griffi ths at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). He uses and develops computational modeling techniques to investigate the brain connectivity structures underlying neuropsychiatric disorders. He also likes cosplaying.

Kyla Trkulja is a fi rst year MSc student at IMS studying under the supervision of Dr. Armand Keating, Dr. John Kuruvilla, and Dr. Rob Laister at Princess Margaret Hospital. Her work focuses on novel cancer therapies for lymphoma. Outside of academia, Kyla enjoys reading, writing, road trips, and going for walks in nature.

Stacey J Butler

is a third year PhD student at IMS, specializing in respiratory medicine and epidemiology, under the supervision of Dr. Andrea Gershon. Outside of academia, Stacey enjoys creative activities, board games and cooking hearty vegetarian meals.

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Madhumitha (Madhu)

Rabindranath is a fi rst year MSc student at IMS who is supervised by Dr. Mamatha Bhat. Her research focuses on leveraging AI to non-invasively diagnose liver graft fi brosis in post-transplant patients. Outside the lab, Madhu likes reading a good book and exploring the city.

Sonja Elsaid is a PhD student investigating brain function and cannabis use in individuals with social anxiety. Prior to going back to school, Sonja was a clinical research and medical communications professional with nearly 20 years of experience.

Sandy Che-Eun

Lee is a fi ft h year PhD student under the supervision of Dr. Marianne Koritzinsky at the Princess Margaret Cancer Research Center. Her research focuses on characterizing a novel oxygen sensitive enzyme in the hypoxic tumour microenvironment. Outside of the lab, Sandy enjoys running and exploring new activities like rock climbing!

Social Media Team 2T2 IMS Design Team

Th e 2T2 IMS Design Team is a group of second year MSc students in the Biomedical Communications (BMC) program. Turning scientifi c research into compelling visualizations is their shared passion, and they are thrilled to contribute to the IMS Magazine.

Amy Zhang

(Director) amykzhang.com

Sherry An

sher.i.an ansherry.com

Amy Assabgui

amya_visuals amyassabgui.com

Mimi Guo

mimi.guo.art mimiguoart.com

Abeeshan Selvabaskaran

abeeshan.art abeeshans.github.io

Michie Wu

michiewu michiewu.com