Contributors Summer 2023

Niki Akbarian is a first-year MSc student under the supervision of Dr. Linda Mah and Dr. James Kennedy. Her research focuses on better understanding the association between personality traits and biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease and the genetic basis of this association. Outside of academia, Niki enjoys photography, playing the piano, and watching sitcoms.

Ilakkiah Chandran is a first year MSc student at IMS supervised by Dr. Danielle Andrade at the Krembil Brain Institute. Her thesis aims to understand the phenotypic and genotypic presentation of pediatriconset developmental and epileptic encephalopathies in adults. In her free time, she enjoys reading, going on impromptu adventures and tuning into some true-crime!

Sonia Elsjad 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.

Kristen Ashworth is a first year MSc student working under the supervision of Dr. Brian Ballios at the Donald K. Johnson Eye Institute and Krembil Research Institute. Her thesis is focused on developing a retinal organoid model to evaluate stem cell therapies for USH2A- and CRB1related inherited retinal diseases. Kristen loves cross country running, reading, going to Marshalls, and most importantly, doting on her two adorable golden retrievers.

Mahbod Ebrahimi is a first-year MSc student investigating the association between immune gene expression and suicide risk in schizophrenia patients under the supervison of Dr. James Kennedy. Outside of research, Mahbod enjoys a good book, playing chess, and listening to Jazz music. Mahbod is also an active member of IMS Magazine’s Social Media team.

Bahar Golbon is a second-year MSc student investigating the surgical outcomes of primary hyperparathyroid patients in Ontario under the supervision of Dr. Jesse Pasternak. In her free time, you can find Bahar completing her millionth puzzle, and drinking a cup of coffee!

Sipan Haikazian is a first-year MSc student researching the efficacy and safety of maintenance ketamine infusions for relapse prevention in patients with treatment-resistant bipolar depression, under the supervision of Dr. Joshua Rosenblat. Outside of research, Sipan enjoys playing the piano, exercising, and being around good company.

Nikou Kelardashti is a first year MSc student under the supervision of Dr. Karen Davis. Her research focuses on the relationship between neural oscillations and pain-attention interaction. Outside of academia, Nikou enjoys reading poetry and classic literature, watching old movies, and going for long walks.

Kateryna Maksyutynska is a PhD candidate investigating whether brain insulin resistance is a feature of the biology of depression under the supervision of Dr. Mahavir Agarwal and Dr. Margaret Hahn at CAMH. Outside of the lab, she can be found enjoying a good book, painting, or biking along the lake.

Iciar Iturmendi Sabater is a PhD student researching social processing and adaptation across neurodevelopmental conditions (autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, etc) under the supervision of Dr. Meng-Chuan Lai and Dr. HsiangYuan Lin. Iciar likes reading, exploring new places, and spending time with family and friends.

Janet Z. Li is a first-year MSc student studying brain-behavior relationships between conditioned pain modulation capability and functional connectivity of key pathways in the dynamic pain connectome under Dr. Karen Davis at the Krembil Brain Institute in Toronto Western Hospital. Outside of research, she can be found practicing piano, figure skating, creating fashion content, and café hopping.

Samantha Ricardo is a first-year MSc student studying mechanisms of Alport Syndrome under the supervision of Dr. Moumita Barua at PMCRT. Outside of the lab, you can catch her biking around the city, trying new cuisines, or attempting to play chess.

Denise Sabac is a first year MSc Student working with Dr. Felsky in the Krembil Centre for Neuroinformatics at CAMH. Her work aims to subtype mental illnesses in treatment-seeking youth using Similarity Network Fusion analysis of the Toronto Adolescent & Youth CAMH Cohort Study data. Aside from research, Denise enjoys playing sports, walking along sandy beaches, and drinking lots of coffee.

Kyla Trkulja is a third year PhD 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 better understanding the mechanism of action of a novel cancer therapy for lymphoma so it can be better utilized in the clinic. Outside of academia, Kyla enjoys reading, writing, video games, and going for road trip adventures across the province. kylatrkulja_

Social Media Team

Elizabeth Karvasarki (Lead) is a PhD IMS at Mount Sinai Catheterization Laboratory under the supervision of Dr. Susanna Mak. Her research involves investigating right ventricular and pulmonary arterial interactions in patients with pulmonary hypertension and heart failure. Outside of research, Elizabeth practices martial arts and is a 4th degree black belt.

Shu’ayb Simmons is a second year IMS MSc student working with Dr. Tripathy at the CAMH Krembil Centre for Neuroinformatics. Their work aims to quantify geneenvironment interactions using robust data analysis and statistics to better Black American psychiatric outcomes. In their free time, Shu‘ayb enjoys advocacy, fashion, travelling, producing music, and songwriting.

Beatrix Wang is a fourth year PhD student who, under the supervision of Drs. Freda Miller and David Kaplan, is trying to better understand neural stem cell behaviour during development. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing, and learning taekwondo.

Lizabeth Teshler is a first year MSc student at IMS supervised by Dr. Brian Feldman at The Hospital for Sick Children. Her research investigates physical joint health assessment in people with Hemophilia. Outside of research, Lizabeth loves biking, spending time outdoors and volunteering for various community initiatives.