Trainee Awardees

Current Holders of ACHRI STEP Awards

  • Samantha Baglot, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Matthew Hill
    • Project: Long-term effects of inhaled cannabis delivery during pregnancy on immune system functioning and social behaviour in male and female rats
  • Jay Devine, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Benedikt Hallgrimsson
    • Project: High-Throughput Discovery of Novel Craniofacial Phenotypes in Development
  • Rachel Lacroix, Master’s Student; supervisor Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
    • Project: The influence of gene x environment interactions in the development of Autism Spectrum Disorders
  • Saif Sikdar, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Douglas Mahoney
    • Project: Role of the microbiome in tumour immune surveillance and oncolytic virus immunotherapy
  • Dan Zhang, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. David Hansen
    • Project: The Role of the RNA-Induced Silencing Complex (RISC) Component VIG-1 in C. elegans Stem Cell Regulation
  • Laura Rojas, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Gerald Giesbrecht
    • Project: Investigating the role of gastrointestinal microbiota as a mediator between mode of delivery and cognitive outcomes in children
  • Katherine Silang, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Lianne Tomfohr-Madsen
    • Project: Pregnancy During a Pandemic: Effects of Psychological Distress on Infant Temperament
  • Jacqueline Wilson, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Karen Benzies
    • Project: Evaluating strategies for patient and family engagement in the scale and spread of Alberta Family Integrated Care (FICare) in Alberta Neonatal Intensive Care Units
  • Krista Wollny, PhD Student; supervisors Dr. Amy Metcalfe and Dr. Deborah McNeil
    • Project: Unplanned Extubations: a Preventable Adverse Event in Pediatric Critical Care
  • David Aponte, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Benedikt Hallgrimsson
    • Project: Automated Craniofacial Syndrome Diagnosis From Three-Dimensional Facial Imaging
  • Lindsay Phillips, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. William Brook
    • Project: Analysis of interactions between midline and Mothers-against-decapentaplegic in Drosophila leg development
  • Sadman Sakib, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Ina Dobrinski
    • Project: Novel approaches for scalable long-term expansion of germ cells and in vitro spermatogenesis
  • Sumedh Bele, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Maria Santana
    • Project: Assessing the Integration of Patient-reported Outcome Measures in Routine Pediatric Clinical Care for Asthma 
  • Daphne Nakhid, Master's Student; supervisors Dr. Catherine Lebel and Dr. Carly McMorris
    • Project: Brain Structure and Internalizing Behaviours in Children and Adolescents with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure
  • Nikki Stephenson, PhD Student; supervisors Dr. Amy Metcalfe and Dr. Suzanne Tough
    • Project: Risk and Protective Factors of Child Development for Children Born too Soon
  • Emma Amyot, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Susan Graham
    • Project: Examining Preverbal Infants’ Ability to Categorize Novel Facial Expressions using Labels
  • Rachel Dean, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Carly McMorris
    • Project: Cognitive-behavioural correlates of suicide attempts in youth with autism
  • Conné Lategan, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Stephen Freedman
    • Project: Association Between Emergency Department Service Satisfaction and Clinical and Demographic Factors in Albertan Children and Youth Presenting With a Mental Health Concerns
  • Daniel Lee, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Carol Huang
    • Project: The role of prolactin signaling in beta-cell adaptation to metabolic stress
  • Caroline Luszawski, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Keith Yeates
    • Project: Sleep Disturbance and Post-Concussive Symptoms in Pediatric Concussion and Orthopedic Injury
  • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Laura Mah, Master's Student; supervisor Dr. Douglas Mahoney
    • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Project: Development of strategies to use oncolytic virus vectored vaccines (OVvac) to boost multitargeting Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cells to treat neuroblastoma (NB) and other pediatric cancers
  • Krystel Wittevrongel, Master's Student; supervisors Dr. Jennifer Zwicker and Dr. Keith Yeates
    • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Project: ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Epidemiology of Pediatric Concussion in Alberta
  • Parker La, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Ashley Harris
    • Project: Advancing Concussion Assessment in Pediatrics (A-CAP): Studying brain metabolites in pediatric concussion
  • Arthur Dantas, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Karl Riabowol
    • ​​​​​​​Project: Epigenetic mechanisms to prevent Rhabdomyosarcoma recurrence
  • Fahad Iqbal, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Naweed Syed
    • Project: Brain-Machine Interfacing: High-resolution screening of brain activity patterns in freely behaving animals as a predictor of seizure onset​​​​​​​
  • Aarti Keijriwal, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Peng Huang
    • ​​​​​​​Project: Temporal integration of Notch and Hedgehog signaling during spinal cord patterning
  • Emily Mercer, PhD Student; supervisor Dr. Marie-Claire Arrieta
    • ​​​​​​​Project: Taxonomic and functional gut microbiome diversity involvement in early-life stress physiology development
  • Heather Shepherd, PhD Student; supervisors Dr. Amanda Black and Dr. Carolyn Emery
    • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Project: Development of an enhanced, tailored, and feasible return-to-school strategy for youth who have sustained a concussion​​​​​​​
  • Dr. Suchit Ahuja, PhD; supervisor Dr. Sarah Childs
    • Awarded CSM-ACHRI Fellowship
    • Project: Uncovering the role of Foxf2 in brain vascular stability
  • Dr. Brae Anne McArthur, PhD; supervisor Dr. Sheri Madigan
    • Project: Screen time and poor child development
  • Dr. Mohamad-Reza Aghanoori, PhD; supervisor Dr. Guang Yan
    • Project: Targeting the Mislocalized CELF2 Protein to Fight a Rare Neurodevelopmental Disorder  
  • Dr. Manon Defaye, PhD; supervisor Dr. Christophe Altier
    • Awarded CSM-ACHRI Fellowship
    • Project: Role of TRPV1 colonic neurons in this microbiota-gut-brain axis in chronic visceral pain.
  • Dr. Golam Mezbah Uddin, PhD; supervisor Dr. Tim Shutt
    • Awarded CSM-ACHRI Fellowship
    • Project: Investigating how the ketogenic diet promotes mitochondrial fusion as a novel approach to target autism spectrum disorder
  • Dr. Ted Verhey, PhD; supervisor Dr. Sorana Morrissy
    • Project: The proteogenomic landscape of pediatric high-grade glioma
  • Dr. Marta Vidal-Garcia, PhD; supervisor Dr. Benedikt Hallgrimsson
    • Project: A novel approach for understanding the developmental and genetic basis of phenotypic integration
  • Dr. Deepika Dogra, PhD; supervisor Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
    • Project: A precision medicine approach to modeling a rare pediatric epilepsy
  • Dr. Bethany Radford, PhD; supervisor Dr. Myriam Hemberger
    • Awarded CSM-ACHRI Fellowship
    • Project: Understanding the Origins of Congenital Heart Disease - Defining the Causative Role of the Placenta
  • Dr. Nathalia de Lima e Martins Lara, PhD; supervisor Dr. Ina Dobrinsk
    • Project: Testicular organoids derived from induced pluripotent stem cells as a bioassay for modelling testicular development and function in vitro
  • Dr. Lin Li, PhD; supervisor Dr. Edwin Wang
    • Project: Understanding the mechanism underlying immune cell infiltration in pediatric glioblastoma using combined bioinformatic and experimental approaches
  • Dr. Erin Noye Tuplin, PhD; supervisor Dr. Raylene Reimer
    • Project: The effects of human milk oligosaccharide supplementation during critical periods of neurodevelopment on obesity susceptibility in adulthood
  • Dr. Yiqun Lin, MD, PhD; supervisor Dr. Adam Cheng
    • Project: Impact of aerosol box use on patterns of contamination in pediatric healthcare providers and environment during aerosol generating medical procedures in the management of simulated COVID-19 patients: A simulation-based study
  • Dr. Katherine Manning, PhD; supervisor Dr. Catherine Lebel
    • Project: Linking the development of brain structure and function with the emergence of mental health in adolescence
  • Dr. Joanne Park, PhD; supervisor Dr. Kelly Schwartz
    • Project: Examining the role of parent and child executive functions as transdiagnostic risk factors for child psychopathology
  • Dr. Kiran Todkar, PhD; supervisor Dr. Jeff Biernaskie
    • Project: Characterizing immune cell-fibroblast interactions that promote skin regeneration
  • Dr. Marcel de Wouw, PhD; supervisor Dr. Gerry Giesbrecht
    • Project: What is Bugging our Children? The Role of the Prenatal Stress and the Gut Microbiome in Neurodevelopment and Mental Health Outcomes in Early Life
  • Dr. Tatiana Maroilley, PhD; supervisor ​​​​​​​Dr. Maja Tarailo-Graovac
    • Project: ​​​​​​​Improving detection and interpretation of complex genomic rearrangements to diagnose Canadian Indigenous children affected by a rare disease​​​​​​​
  • Dr. Qianqian Guo, PhD; supervisor Dr. Jiami Guo
    • ​​​​​​​Project: To investigate the astrocytes-driven mechanisms in ASD
  • Dr. Sisu Han, PhD; supervisor Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
    • ​​​​​​​Project: The influence of psilocybin on human neurogenesis
  • Dr. Craig Jacobs, PhD; supervisor Dr. Benedikt Hallgrimsson
    • Project: Characterising how developmental "tipping points" generate phenotypic variance in birth defects
  • Dr. Elnaz Vaghef Mehrabani, PhD; supervisor Dr. Gerry Giesbrecht
    • ​​​​​​​Project: Pre-pregnancy obesity and childhood internalizing problems: Mediating role of prenatal systemic inflammation and moderating role of pre-pregnancy diet
  • Dr. Tara Spence, PhD; supervisors Dr. Jillian Parboosingh
    • Project: Reanalysis of clinical whole exome sequencing data for evaluation of diagnostic yield and cost-effectiveness
  • Dr. Amanda Tyndall, PhD; supervisors Dr. Jillian Parboosingh and Dr. Ryan Lamont
    • Project: Rapid Access to Pediatric Diagnoses (RAPiD) Kidomics
  • Dr. Bibi Areefa Alladin-Karan, MBBS; supervisor Dr. Susan Samuel
    • Project: Ig A Nephropathy: Understanding risk of chronic kidney disease progression and outcomes in children and young adults 
  • Dr. Kristine Woodward, MD; supervisor Dr. Michael Esser
    • Project: Multi-modal monitoring of brain at risk in critically ill children
  • Dr. Areefa Alladin-Karan, MD; supervisor Dr. Susan Samuel
    • Project: Ig A Nephropathy: Understanding risk of chronic kidney disease progression and outcomes in children and young adults
  • Dr. Omar Damji, MD; supervisor Dr. Vincent Grant
    • Project: VITAL – Virtual Reality for Intubation Training As a Lifesaving Measure
  • Dr. Deepika Dogra, PhD; supervisor Dr. Deborah Kurrasc
    • Project: Transcriptomic profiling of brain organoids derived from SCN8A-related epilepsy patients with differential drug response
  • Dr. Shirin Moossavi, PhD; supervisor Dr. Marie-Claire Arriet
    • Project: Mechanistic insight into microbiome restoration in premature infants using gut-microbiome-on-a-chip
  • Dr. Kayla Stone, PhD; supervisor Dr. Frank MacMaster
    • Project: The effects of neurostimulation on inhibitory control in youth
  • Dr. Michèle Hébert, PhD; supervisor Dr. Jennifer Zwicker
    • Project: Reducing fragmentation in care transitions for children with medical complexity by informing health system guidelines and policy
  • Dr. Eli Kinney-Lang, PhD; supervisor Dr. Adam Kirton
    • Project: Brain Drain: Understanding fatigue in brain-computer interfaces (BCI) for children
  • Dr. Brae Anne McArthur, PhD; supervisor Dr. Sheri Madigan
    • Project: Screen Use Co-viewing Context and the Associated Impact on Language Learning in Infants
  • Simran Bains; supervisor Dr. Ray W. Turner
    • Project: Dosing regime for FMRP-N-tat recovery of function in Fragile X
  • Akanksha Bhargava; supervisor Dr. Nadia Luca
    • Awarded BME-ACHRI Summer Studentship Awar
    • Project: Technology-Based Intervention to Improve Treatment Adherence in Adolescents and Young Adults with Rheumatic Disease 
  • Nadia DiMarzo; supervisor Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
    • Project: Characterizing epileptic phenotypes in Zebrafish slc13a5 mutants
  • Allesha Eman; supervisor Dr. Frank MacMaster
    • Project: Investigation and comparison of cortical thickness in different regions of the brain in children ages 9-10
  • Danae Fell; supervisor Dr. Laura Sycuro
    • Project: Fannyhessea vaginae’s internalin: a novel mediator of host-microbe interactions at the vaginal mucosal surface?
  • Milan Heck; supervisor Dr. Graham Thompson
    • Project: HMGB1 protein as an inflammatory biomarker for acute appendicitis in pediatric patients
  • Brianna Henry; supervisor Dr. Fiona Schulte
    • Project: Adherence to Follow-Up Care Among Survivors of Pediatric Cancer in Canada
  • Brandon Huynh; supervisor Dr. Ina Dobrinski
    • Project: Application of iPSC-derived germ cells to enrich the germ cell pool in pig testicular organoids
  • Darpal Patel; supervisor Dr. Catherine Lebel
    • Project: Relationship between IQ and volume of hippocampal subfields in children with PAE
  • Mitali Pradhan; supervisor Dr. Adam Kirton
    • Project: Connectivity-based segmentation of the thalamus in perinatal stroke
  • Jamie Roeske; supervisor Dr. Richard Wilson
    • Project: The SOS of Inflammation: how prostaglandins modulate breathing
  • Harshil Shah; supervisor Dr. Kara Murias
    • Project: Examining the Association Between Sensorimotor Measurements and Behaviour in Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders
  • Temoor Tayyab; supervisor Dr. Stephanie L. Borgland
    • Project: Identifying targets for treatment of anxiety in anorexia nervosa
  • Jerome Timbol; supervisor Dr. Jiami Guo
    • Project: Utilizing High-throughput Screening to Identify Morphology and Calcium Functionality of Hypothalamic Primary Cilia  
  • Pasindu Wickramarachchi; supervisor Dr. Cam Teskey
    • Project: Examining the clinical utility of vaporized and edible cannabis products (THC and CBD) for treating seizure-induced changes in emotional behaviour.
  • Rylen Williamson; supervisor Dr. Carolyn Emery
    • Project: Evaluating Referee Knowledge through Construct Validity and Inter-rater Reliability related to Head Contact Penalty Assessment Policies in Canadian Youth Ice Hockey.