Staff
Kaz Laird – Lab Manager – einsteinlabmanager@psych.utoronto.ca
Kaz graduated from the University of Toronto with an Honours B.Sc. in Psychology and Spanish and has continued to be involved with the psychology department since then. He is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the lab, manages the database for the Estrogens & Cognition project, and also coordinates the Women, Sex, Gender, and Dementia program led by Dr. Einstein as part of the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration and Aging (CCNA).
Lina Khayyat – Montreal Site Research Assistant – estrogen.cognition.project@gmail.com
Lina received her B.A. in Psychology from McGill University, and has since taken an interest in research, working on different projects at different labs as a research assistant. She joined the Einstein Lab in the summer of 2020 working on the Estrogen & Cognition project, looking at the effects of oophorectomies on women. She oversees the Montreal site, specifically working on recruitment and testing. Since being a part of the lab, her interests in research have only grown. Outside of the lab, Lina enjoys traveling, photography, reading, and binge-watching horror movies.
Scientific Associate
Nicole Gervais, Ph.D. – ngervais@research.baycrest.org
Currently a Scientific Associate affiliated with the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest, Nicole completed a research fellowship with the Einstein Lab co-funded by the Alzheimer’s Association and Brain Canada Foundation to study early markers of Alzheimer’s disease in middle-aged women with a bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, and spontaneous menopause. She focuses on four themes related to Alzheimer’s disease: 1) memory, 2) brain structure, 3) sleep, and 4) inflammation. She uses structural MRI to estimate volumes of the hippocampus, entorhinal, perirhinal, and parahippocampal cortices and relate any changes to differences on memory tests. Nicole measures objective sleep parameters using polysomnography to investigate sleep disturbance. Her training was in behavioural neuroscience, working with rats during her Ph.D. (Concordia University, 2014) and aging common marmosets during her first postdoc (University of Massachusetts – Amherst, 2014-2016). Her primary research interests are to understand how aging, sleep, and hormones influence memory and its neural substrates across species. These interests include: 1) how structures in the medial temporal lobe (MTL) sub serve memory, 2) how sleep and cognition are altered by aging, 3) how chronic inflammation contributes to cognitive aging, and 4) the impact of biological sex and hormones on aging, with a focus on memory.
Nicole Gervais' Publications
Postdoctoral Fellow
Reema Shafi, Ph.D., OT. Reg (Ont.) – reema.shafi@utoronto.ca
Reema’s postdoctoral training focuses on understanding the early neural, cognitive and inflammatory changes in the female brain following natural menopause and prophylactic oophorectomy. The goal of her research is to identify pre-clinical biomarkers of cognitive decline and neurodegeneration linked to dementia. Previously, her research has focused on utilizing various functional neuroimaging techniques to understand the neuropathophysiology of traumatic brain injury as well as explore the sex-specific impact of brain trauma. Her most prominent research contribution has been the identification of a vascular biomarker that holds promise for single-subject level diagnosis of concussion (diagnostic accuracy; AUCs of 0.88-0.94). As an occupational therapist and translational researcher, Reema strives to use an interdisciplinary approach to inform and advance the field of neurorehabilitation; especially as it relates to functional restoration post injury and across the healthy aging trajectory. Reema’s postdoctoral training focuses on understanding the early neural, cognitive and inflammatory changes in the female brain following natural menopause and prophylactic oophorectomy. The goal of her research is to identify pre-clinical biomarkers of cognitive decline and neurodegeneration linked to dementia. Previously, her research has focused on utilizing various functional neuroimaging techniques to understand the neuropathophysiology of traumatic brain injury as well as explore the sex-specific impact of brain trauma. Her most prominent research contribution has been the identification of a vascular biomarker that holds promise for single-subject level diagnosis of concussion (diagnostic accuracy; AUCs of 0.88-0.94). As an occupational therapist and translational researcher, Reema strives to use an interdisciplinary approach to inform and advance the field of neurorehabilitation; especially as it relates to functional restoration post injury and across the healthy aging trajectory.
Graduate students
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- Alana Brown – Doctoral Student – alana.brown@mail.utoronto.ca
Alana received her Psychology Master’s degree at the University of Toronto and is now a Ph.D. candidate with the Einstein Lab. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science from UofT in 2016, and is fortunate to have worked on a variety of projects in the Einstein Lab for two years prior to joining as a graduate student. She is particularly interested in the impact of hormones on brain structure and function in the context of spatial abilities, navigation strategies, and wayfinding behaviors in humans. Outside of the lab, Alana enjoys science fiction, drawing, photography, cooking spicy food, and exploring the city.Alana Brown's Publications
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- Laura Gravelsins – Doctoral Student – laura.gravelsins@mail.utoronto.ca
Laura received her Honours B.Sc. in 2017 and M.A. in 2018, both at the University of Toronto and she is now a Ph.D. psychology student at the Einstein Lab. She feels fortunate to have been a part of the lab during the 4th year of her undergraduate degree and Masters degree, and strongly values its interdisciplinary, diverse, and feminist research. The complex relationship between genes, hormones, and cognition is fascinating to Laura, and her current research focuses on investigating cognitive performance in oral contraceptive users. Outside of the lab she is a don at Victoria College and enjoys playing ice hockey with friends and family! - Danielle Jacobson – Doctoral Student – dani.jacobson@mail.utoronto.ca
Danielle Jacobson is a Ph.D. candidate at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. She is in the Social and Behavioural Health Sciences Stream and is also in the Collaborative Specialization in Women’s Health. Coming from a background in Cognitive Neuroscience, researching sensorimotor learning, she integrates her experience in Psychology with her passion for women’s health. Danielle’s research focus is on the obstetric interaction between women with female genital cutting (FGC) and OB/GYNs in Toronto. In particular, she is interested in better understanding how clinical decisions are made. Danielle aims to conduct social justice oriented research that works toward health equity for immigrant women. - Mateja Perovic – Doctoral Student – m.perovic@mail.utoronto.ca
Mateja received her Honours BSc from Leiden University in 2017, and completed her M.A. in Psychology from the University of Toronto with the Einstein Lab in 2020. Broadly, she is interested in the interplay between women’s brain health and their social context. Her primary research focus is minority stress and cognitive aging in sexual minority women. She has previously studied female genital cutting and neuropathic pain, as well as the effects of estradiol replacement therapy on cognition and brain structure in women with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Outside of her work in the lab, she spends her time reading, hiking, and petting as many dogs as possible.
- Laura Gravelsins – Doctoral Student – laura.gravelsins@mail.utoronto.ca
Mateja Perovic's Publications
- Laila Rahman– Doctoral Student – laila.rahman@mail.utoronto.ca
Laila Rahman is a Ph.D. candidate in Social and Behavioral Health Sciences in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. She hopes to contribute to achieving health equity and social justice through intellectual activism and research. Before joining the graduate program, she conducted research on maternal health, sexual and reproductive health, and violence against women and girls using quasi-experimental designs. Funded by the Canadian Institute of Health Research and Lupina Senior doctoral fellowships, Laila is currently in dialogue with postcolonial feminism, intersectionality, and Johnson’s violence typology in gender-based violence research in Bangladesh. In complicating the current male physical intimate partner violence (MPIPV) against women discourse, Laila’s project seeks to explore MPIPV-involved women’s and men’s intersecting social locations, their experience of multiple forms of MPIPV including intimate terrorism and situational couple violence, and women’s act of resistance against the MPIPV. - Rebekah Reuben – Doctoral Student – rebekah.reuben@mail.utoronto.ca
Rebekah is a Ph.D. student in Psychology at the University of Toronto. She received an Honors B.Sc. in Psychology from Loyola University New Orleans in 2016, and an M.A. in Psychology from the University of Toronto in 2017. She is broadly interested in understanding sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease, investigating early predictors of cognitive impairment, and determining trajectories of change in cognition and brain structure over time. Rebekah is also fascinated by statistics and research methods, and loves learning about new techniques and improving her coding skills. When she’s not in the lab, Rebekah enjoys reading novels, watching and talking about films, and exploring new places! - Laurice Karkaby – Masters Student and Research Engineer – karkaby@psych.utoronto.ca
Laurice received her Honours B.Sc. at the University of Toronto, with a Specialist in Psychology and major in Sociology. She is an M.A. student with the Einstein Lab and also manages the research activities of the lab’s international collaboration Cognition After Bilateral Salpingo Oophorectomy (CABSOE) in Linköping, Sweden, where she is currently based. Her research interests are in the quality of life and experiences of women with oophorectomy. Outside of the office, Laurice travels as a scuba dive instructor in the summer where she leads marine conservation activities and educates schools on reef ecology and protecting our oceans.
Work Study Students
- Shreeyaa Ramana
- Eric Yin
- Karen Chen Yang
Research Opportunity Program & Independent Research Project Students
- Kristen Li
- Shelby Davies
Research Assistants
- Aanya Bahl
- Tony Cao
- Leyla Castro
- Alisa Chun Li
- Hannah Gans
- Galo Ginochio
- Joshua Grief
- Mihojana Jhumi
- Lina Khayyat
- Rohina Kumar
- Garene Matossian
- Vaneeza Moosa
- Danae Penichet
- Simone Rusu
- Suha Sagheer
- Manhal Sultana
- Katrina Wugalter
- Michelle Wrona
- Zack Vaughn
- Sophia Zhao
- Alana Brown – Doctoral Student – alana.brown@mail.utoronto.ca
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