Owerko Centre Catalyst Grants in Neurodevelopmental Research

Examining the impact of early-life nutrition on the microbiome and brain development of infants

Principal Investigator: Dr. Meredith Brockway, PhD, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Nursing 

Co-Applicants: Dr. Julia Kam, Dr. Michelle Asbury, Dr. Chunlong Mu                   
Collaborators: Ms. Jannette Festival, Ms. Donna Gersbach 

The focus of this research project is to understand how early-life nutrition impacts the developing infant brain and if different nutritional supplements are better for brain development compared to others. Through a community-focused approach we use integrated knowledge translation tactics to create a better understanding of the impact of early-life supplementation on child brain development. This can lead to better training, education, and support strategies for nursing and healthcare staff to support informed infant feeding decisions when working with postpartum families. 

Accessible diagnosis and monitoring devices to support better care for children with severe epilepsy

Principal Investigator: Dr. Julia Jacobs-LeVan, MD, Associate Professor, Paediatrics/Neuroscience, Cumming School of Medicine

Co-applicant: Dr. Eli Kinney-Lang

This project addresses a critical gap in the diagnosis and monitoring of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEE), which are severe neurodevelopmental disorders. Current clinical care relies on resource-intensive, hospital-based EEG recordings that are difficult to access, burdensome for families, and insufficient for frequent monitoring of disease activity. This project integrates biomedical engineering, pediatric neurology, and machine learning to determine whether simplified EEG systems using reduced electrode configurations can reliably detect and quantify epileptiform spike burden and classify disease severity. This work will lay the foundation for wearable and community-based EEG technologies, improve treatment timing and disease tracking, and ultimately support earlier, more responsive care for children. The collaboration between engineering and clinical epilepsy research creates a new translational pathway, linking neurodevelopmental science with emerging digital health monitoring technologies.

Accessible Brain Imaging for Children: Developing Gradient Coil Systems for Ultra-Low Field MRI in Neurodevelopmental Research

Principal Investigator: Dr. Ethan MacDonald, PhD, Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering/Electrical and Software Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering

Co-applicant: Dr. Chathura Kumaragamage

Standard MRI scanners are large, expensive, and noisy, which makes them difficult to use with young children — especially children with neurodevelopmental conditions like autism or ADHD, who can find the experience overwhelming and often need sedation. A University of Calgary team is working toward a smaller, quieter, lower-cost MRI scanner that could one day bring brain imaging directly to the children and communities who need it most, without sedation or a trip to a major hospital.

This project tackles one essential piece of that scanner: the gradient coils. Gradient coils are the component that shapes the scanner's magnetic field so it can build a clear, detailed picture of the brain — without them, a scanner cannot produce an image. With support from the Owerko Centre, the team will design, build, and test this component and integrate it into the low-field MRI system they are developing. It is a focused, foundational step that moves an accessible, child-friendly brain scanner from concept toward reality.