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BCH Neonatal Imaging BCH 3181
300 Longwood Avenue Boston, MA 02115
Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging
Developmental Science Center
Leadership
LEADERSHIP
P. Ellen Grant, MD
Director of FNNDSC
Staff Clinician
Kaethe Beutler, MD Professor of Pediatrics, Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School
Dr. Grant is a Kaethe Beutler, MD Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School. She is the founding Director of the Fetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center (FNNDSC), holds the Boston Children’s Hospital endowed chair in Neonatology and serves as a clinical Neuroradiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Grant founded the FNNDSC in 2009 to develop and optimize tools and analysis streams for better detecting and understanding both normal and abnormal brain physiology and development. The primary end goal is to provide mechanistic information that enables optimization of cognitive, behavioral and neurological outcomes in children with a focus on fetuses, neonates, infants and toddlers. Three modalities being developed in the center are Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Magnetoencephalography (MEG) and Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS). She leads a team of MR physicists and engineers doing pulse sequence development and novel MR imaging analysis. Her team build a novel pediatric specific MEG system that is now FDA approved and provides clinical services for presurgical evaluation of infants and toddlers with epilepsy. She is also a pioneer of frequency domain NIRS (FDNIRS) and diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) which provides bedside measures of cerebral blood flow and oxygen consumption. To support the computational needs of complex data analysis, her team has developed a sophisticated computational infrastructure in collaboration with RedHat to facilitate and support deep-learning approaches on large datasets as well as real time data analysis. The FNNDSC currently has over 60 members with 17 faculty and at least 7 postdoctoral students. Dr. Grant is a Senior Fellow of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) and sits on the Board of Scientific Counselors for National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. She was selected to present the Mansfield Lecture at the ISMRM in 2020 and in 2021 she was recognized by the American Society of Neuroradiology with the Outstanding Contributions in Research Award.
Rudolph Pienaar, PhD
Technical Director of FNNDSC
Staff Scientist
Assistant Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School
Dr Pienaar completed a Bachelors and Masters in Electrical, Electronic, and Computer Engineering at the University of Pretoria in Pretoria, South Africa and holds a Doctorate in Biomedical Engineering from Cleveland State University/Cleveland Clinic Foundation where he conducted research in Reinforcement Learning applied to musculo-skeletal bio-mechanical control systems. He completed postdoctoral work at the Massachusetts General Hospital where he was an Assistant in Medical Imaging and is currently Faculty in Radiology at Boston Children's Hospital and an Assistant Professor in Radiology at Harvard Medical School. Dr Pienaar's research interests include brain surface feature analysis, tractography-from an-informatics perspective, cloud computing, image visualization, and system design. At the FNNDSC, he leads the Advanced Computing Group, responsible for the developing new informatics infrastructure solutions to clinical problems. He is the main technical lead on the ChRIS platform that brings research computing solutions closer to clinical front lines.
FACULTY
Faculty
Borjan Gagoski, PhD
Research Associate
Assistant Professor in Radiology at Harvard Medical School
Borjan Gagoski received his PhD in 2011 from the Magnetic Resonance Imaging Lab at the EECS department at MIT. His early research included the implementation of time-efficient encoding schemes for spectroscopic imaging on Siemens MR platforms. After spending one year as a postdoctoral associate in the same MIT lab, he joined Dr. Grant's lab in January 2012. He is currently an Instructor of Radiology at BCH. His main role in the lab as Chief MRI physicist is to help move numerous MRI projects forward by always making sure that the newest MR technical developments are being applied for research and clinical neonatal and fetal scans.
More links to: Website - ResearchGate
Pei-Yi (Ivy) Lin, PhD
Director of FNNDSC NIRS Program
Staff Scientist
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School
Pei-Yi (Ivy) Lin is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and faculty in the Division of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics at Boston’s Children’s Hospital. She has a PhD in Biomedical Engineering with expertise in the development and clinical application of near-infrared spectroscopy and diffuse correlation spectroscopy techniques. Her current research focuses on cerebral oxygen metabolism development and its association with neurodevelopmental outcomes in premature infants with intraventricular hemorrhage as well as with infants with neonatal brain infection and post-infectious hydrocephalus in low and middle income countries.
More links to: Website ResearchGate
Yangming Ou, PhD
Research Associate
Associate Professor in Radiology at Harvard Medical School
Yangming Ou is an Associate Professor in Radiology at Harvard Medical School. He holds a PhD degree in Medical Image Analysis and an MS degree in Applied Mathematics, both from the University of Pennsylvania. His BS degree was in Electrical Engineering (Biomedical Engineering Division) from Tsinghua University. His research interest lies in the intersection of big data, machine learning, data science, imaging informatics, and healthcare. His team focuses on improving healthcare by medical image analysis, machine learning and imaging informatics. One pillar is the development of innovative medical image analysis and image machine learning algorithms and software tools. The other pillar in Dr. Ou's team is the clinical applications, with collaborations with experts in neurology, neonatology, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiation oncology, nutrition, radiology, informatics, and other fields.
Yoshio Okada, PhD
Director of Research MEG
Associate Scientific Research Staff
Professor of Pediatrics, Part-Time, at Harvard Medical School
Yoshio Okada received his PhD from the Rockefeller University in New York City in psychology and neuroscience. Dr. Okada was a founder of the Biomedical Research and Integrative Neuroimaging Center (BRaIN Imaging Center) at the University of New Mexico prior to joining Harvard Medical School. He is a pioneer in the study of the physiological basis of magnetoencephalography (MEG) and electroencephalography (EEG). Dr. Okada has made contributions to the development of novel biomagnetic instruments that have opened new ways to study the electrophysiology of the brain and is an inventor of new instruments that are either completed and in use or in the process of development. These instruments include a pediatric MEG system called “babySQUID”, a second-generation pediatric MEG system called “babyMEG”, and a whole-head cryogenically cooled Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) system that will provide unique novel methods for studying functional networks of the human brain.
More links to: Website - ResearchGate
Ai Wern Chung, PhD
Associate Scientific Research Staff
Instructor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School
Ai Wern Chung is a computational neuroscientist at FNNDSC with particular interest in MRI connectomics – the study of the brain as an inter-connected network to understand its functional and structural organization in relation to development, ageing or a disease. She is a recipient of a joint American Heart Association and Children’s Heart Foundation Fellowship to identify neuroimaging markers of altered brain structure in adults with congenital heart disease using her novel network theoretical models of energy propagation. After majoring in Computer Science, Dr. Chung went on to obtain a Ph.D. in medical physics in neuroimaging at London’s UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health in the UK. Ever interested in translating advanced brain MRI techniques for the clinic, she has held several research posts in hospital affiliated institutes. These include the Stroke and Dementia Neuroimaging Unit at St. George’s University of London, and the Biostatistics group at the Centre for the Developing Brain at King’s College London. Her research work in previous labs include validation of diffusion MRI models through to their development and application on ageing cohorts, and network theoretical analysis on premature neonates. At FNNDSC, Dr. Chung continues to devise novel methodologies for connectomes to describe system changes in brain organization, and has applied these to MRI studies on children with Autism, concussion, and 16p11.2 Deletion Syndrome. Research aside, she enjoys the outdoors, a good hike and looks forward to the day she can run in the woods with a pet dog.
POSTDOCS & FELLOWS
Aleksandra Ulman, PhD
Research Fellow
Aleksandra is a Research Fellow at Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She obtained her MSc in Molecular Biotechnology from Jagiellonian University, followed by a PhD in Medical Science at Jagiellonian University Medical College, where she investigated the transcriptional regulation of skeletal muscle development using pluripotent stem cells. After completing her PhD, Aleksandra worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Virginia, studying biomolecular condensates biology. Currently, she focuses on the role of the chromatin remodeler CHD7 in congenital heart diseases in Dr. Morton’s lab.
Marcia Harumy Yoshikawa, MD
Research Fellow
Harumy Yoshikawa is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Fetal Neonatal Neuroimaging Developmental Science Center (FNNDSC) at Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She holds a Medical Doctor degree from the University of São Paulo Medical School, Brazil, and previously interned at FNNDSC as a student in 2024. At the FNNDSC, Harumy works with Dr. Ivy Lin on the investigation of radiological predictors of surgical and neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants with hydrocephalus.
Stefanie Perrier, PhD
Research Fellow
Stefanie Perrier is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Fetal Neonatal Neuroimaging Developmental Science Center (FNNDSC) at Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She obtained her HBSc in Chemistry and Biology from Lakehead University, followed by her PhD in Neuroscience from McGill University in Canada. Her doctorate research focused on the study of rare inherited white matter diseases called leukodystrophies. She investigated the clinical features, molecular genetics, and disease mechanisms associated with POLR3-related hypomyelinating leukodystrophy, specifically exploring a novel severe form of the disease. She also gained expertise in genetic data analysis through investigation of patients with genetically undiagnosed hypomyelinating leukodystrophies. Her current neuroscience research interests have expanded from “nature” (i.e., genetics) to include the study of “nurture” (i.e., environment) and the associated impacts on children’s brain development. At the FNNDSC, her research focuses on understanding how nutrition and other factors affect early neurodevelopment, assessed using multi-modal brain MRI analysis techniques.
Andrea Gondova, PhD
Research Fellow
Andrea is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging Developmental Science Center (FNNDSC) at Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She obtained her MSc in Bioinformatics from University of Edinburgh in 2018, followed by a 2-year work experience as a Machine Learning and Data Science Graduate Scientist at AstraZeneca. She then received her PhD in Neuroscience from Université Paris Cité. Her doctoral research performed at Neurospin, CEA, focused on the analysis of multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data, including assessment of structural and functional connectivity as well as gray matter microstructure, to characterize developmental trajectories in preterm and full-term born infants. Presently, Andrea works with Dr. Kiho Im, focusing on developing methods for processing and analysis of fetal brain MRI, particularly for investigations into dynamic morphological patterns of cortical development in both healthy and atypically developing populations.
Franklin Ducatez, PhD
Research Fellow
Dr. Ducatez is a neonatologist from Rouen - France, with a PhD in systems biology and multi-omics analysis. He is currently doing a post-doc period at BCH since September 2024 within the Heart Center to build and test bed-side AI-driven tools from monitoring data. He is a member of the scientific commitee of the French National association for Neonatology.
Postdocs
STAFF
Haoqi Sun
AP-Affiliated Non-Clinic Staff
Dr. Haoqi Sun is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and also affiliated with Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard University. Dr. Sun is trained in artificial intelligence (AI) and sleep medicine. His research interest is to use sleep to infer and understand brain health, including the pediatric population, using AI approaches. He was awarded the Sleep Research Society Outstanding Early Investigator Award in 2020. He served as a consultant on the AI in Sleep Medicine Committee at the American Academy of Sleep Medicine from 2020 to 2023. Dr. Sun has worked and mentored multiple projects, such as sleep-based brain age, outcome prediction, and its analytical validations.
Jennings Zhang
Research Software Developer
Jennings Zhang received his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University. He works with Dr. Rudolph Pienaar’s Advanced Computing Group on ChRIS as a Research Software Developer and previously worked with Dr. Lana Vasung. Before joining the FNNDSC, Jennings worked in a similar lab in Montreal: the McGill Centre for Integrative Neuroscience (MCIN).
Ankush Kesri
Computational Health Informatics Data Manager
I hold a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, India—an Institution of National Importance. Over time, my interests shifted toward computer science and its applications in the medical field, leading me to pursue a Master’s in Engineering Management (MSEM) from Northeastern University, with a specialization in data science and biomedical imaging.
Currently, I work with Dr. Yangming Ou in the i3 group, where I provide data management support to postdoctoral researchers. My role involves data processing, analysis, and visualization, with a particular focus on MRI data pipelines. I have also collaborated with doctors at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, MD, contributing to feature selection process for Sturge-Weber Syndrome patient data.
Beyond my professional work, I enjoy photography and exploring visual storytelling through anime, movies, and documentaries.
Micheal Uhler, PhD
Morton Lab Manager
Mike received his BS in Clinical Chemistry from Seattle University and his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Oregon. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and the University of Washington before moving to the Oregon Health Science University. He moved to the University of Michigan to study biochemical signaling mechanisms in the nervous system and worked there for 36 years before coming to the Morton Laboratory in 2024. His research project here focuses on the biochemical mechanisms of human heart development using induced pluripotent stem cells as models for genes involved in congenital heart disease.
Chuan-heng Hsiao
Computational Biologist
Chuan-Heng Hsiao received Master Degree in Cognitive and Neural Systems from Boston University and Master Degree in Computer Science from Harvard University. He has helped a startup company (Appier) deploying a big-data cluster. Hsiao is currently focusing on deploying a big-data cluster for data collection, analysis, and visualization.
ADMINISTRATION
Tina Giella
Research Administrative Manager
Tina received her BS in Health Policy and Management, with a concentration of Business Studies from Providence College. In 2011, she started at Boston Children's Hospital in the Clinical Translational and Study Unit as an Administrative Associate before switching over to her current position as a Research Administrator in FNNDSC in 2018. She is involved in pre and post grant management. Her primary responsibilities in the Center are (1) to aid our investigators with research grant submissions (2) to manage the center’s research finances. In her spare time, she loves running and spending time with her husband, daughter, and son.
Caroline Schutz
Program Coordinator II
Caroline graduated in May 2024 from Washington State University, earning a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Human Resources Management, Summa Cum Laude. With a rich background in undergraduate cognitive psychological research, HR training for a non-profit healthcare system, and leadership development, Caroline has cultivated a diverse skill set and is passionate about workforce well-being. She acts as the administrative point person for the FNNDSC and handles logistical aspects such as onboarding personnel, coordinating events, overseeing organizational operations, and communications with faculty. Recently relocated to Boston from Bend, Oregon, she enjoys hiking, skiing, running, and crafting charcuterie boards for family and friends.
Kate Eident
Clinical Research Manager I
Kate obtained her BS in Psychology with a concentration of Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She joined the Division of Newborn Medicine in 2017 as a Clinical Research Specialist. After a brief sojourn into industry, she returned in 2024 to continue working with the FNNDSC and the Division of Newborn Medicine as a Clinical Research Manager. Kate's primary roles are supporting the division with IRB and FDA submissions, ISF/TMF creation and maintenance, REDCap builds, and other related regulatory tasks. Outside of the office, you can typically find Kate regretting she's a devoted Chicago Bears fan, playing pub trivia, and relaxing with her husband and two cats.
RESEARCH ASSISTANTS & INTERNS
ResearchAssistants/Student Interns
Sofie Chung
Clinical Research Assistant
I recently graduated from MIT with a B.S. in Computer Science and Cognitive Science. During my undergraduate years, I conducted research across speech, natural language processing, and computer vision, with a particular focus on comparing computational models to human cognition and behavior to better understand how biological and artificial systems process information. At FNNDSC, I will be contributing to two projects: (1) in-utero structural and functional analysis, with Dr. Esra Abaci-Turk, and (2) connectome neuroimaging analysis in congenital heart disease through the lifespan, with Dr. Ai Wern Chung. Outside of work, I enjoy traveling, cooking, and staying active with running, yoga, or martial arts!
Emily Rodriguez Cuevas
Student Intern
My name is Emily Rodriguez, and I am currently a 7th-semester Engineering in Biotechnology student. Previously, I worked on single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) and protein 3D modeling for an ongoing project in Mexico City. Additionally, I interned in Marketing at Eli Lilly, where I gained valuable experience in data analysis and programming complex databases. Although my academic background may not seem directly related to radiology, I have a proven track record of successfully contributing to projects even when I was initially unfamiliar with the field. I am a strong believer that the harder you work for something, the greater the sense of accomplishment when you achieve it.
Emily Castellanos
Clinical Research Assistant
Emily earned her B.A. from Amherst College in 2023, majoring in French and Psychology. Currently, she serves as a Clinical Research Assistant with the Healthy Brain Child Development (HBCD) Study. Her diverse academic interests propel her ambition to pursue a career in pediatric medicine, marked by a dedication to cultural competence and inclusivity in delivering quality healthcare.
Margherita Firenze
Graduate Student Intern
Margherita is an Electrical Engineering and Computer Science PhD student at MIT, advised by Prof. Polina Golland. Her research focuses on developing fast and reliable slice-to-volume registration methods for fetal brain reconstruction. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, where she conducted research in image processing for optical coherence tomography.
João Costa Cruz
Graduate Student Intern
João Costa Cruz is a fourth-year medical student at the University of São Paulo (USP), primarily focusing his research on neurodevelopmental disorders such as Autism and ADHD. Beyond his academic work, he is deeply committed to social projects; he has previously led a medical expedition to provide care for riverside communities in the Amazon and presided over a weekly initiative assisting homeless individuals. At the FNNDSC, João works on neuroimaging research under the supervision of Professor Banu Ahtam. Outside of neuroscience, he is an enthusiastic football fan.
Tiantian Lei
Research Assistant
Tiantian holds an M.S. degree in neuroimaging and informatics from the University of Southern California, where her passion lies in unraveling the intricacies of the nervous system and its diseases through MRI technology. With previous research experience focusing on biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases, specifically Alzheimer's disease, she hopes to continue her exploration of imaging techniques in her role as a research assistant at the FNNDSC. Outside of work, she finds joy in music and movies, and is always on the lookout for the next exciting live show.
Tiffany Berry
Clinical Research Assistant
Tiffany is a Clinical Research Assistant for the HBCD study. She received a B.S. in Biology, B.A. in Psychology, and Certificate in Neuroscience from Providence College in 2022. While at Providence, Tiffany studied grit and stereotype threat among children in the Social Perception and Attitudes Lab and inflammation in neurological disorders in the Stem Cell Lab. She has also supported neurodevelopmental research in the Boston Children’s Hospital Neurobehavioral Core. Her research interests include early adversity, neurodiversity, and interventions to support the development and well-being of children and their families. Tiffany hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in the future.
Aryn Lee
Clinical Research Assistant
Aryn Lee is a Clinical Research Assistant working for Dr. Esra Abaci Turk’s team on fetal and placental MRI. She graduated from Boston University in 2025 with a BA in Psychology. Prior to this role, Aryn was a Graduate Research Intern at FNNDSC with Dr. Sarah Morton, where she investigated 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome and EMG feeding assessments. She has also worked for the Motor Development Lab at Boston University and the Translational Research Institute for Pain in Later Life at Weill Cornell Medicine. In the future, she plans to attend medical school to become a physician-scientist in a pediatric specialty.
Do Kyu Han
Student Intern
I’m Do Kyu Han, an undergraduate Computer Science student. I have research experience in analyzing EEG and ECG signals to investigate brain–heart interactions during cognitive tasks. My work has involved applying advanced signal processing techniques and statistical methods to uncover meaningful physiological patterns. At FNNDS, I will be working as a Data Analyst under the NIRS team, contributing to data processing, analysis, and interpretation to support ongoing research. Outside of my academic and professional work, I enjoy rock climbing.
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