Speaker: Dr. Laura McWhirter

Moderator: Dr. Sarah Lidstone

Dr. Laura McWhirter, PhD, MRCP, MRCPsych, is a consultant neuropsychiatrist at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. Dr. McWhirter trained with Professor Alan Carson in Edinburgh, undertaking a period of doctoral research into functional cognitive disorders. Ongoing research interests include FND, long COVID, TBI, and gender equality as relevant to functional neurological disorders.

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Speaker: Jeffrey Staab

Moderator: Dr. Sarah Lidstone:

Dr. Jeffrey P. Staab, M.D., M.S., is Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology and Consultant in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN.  He and his colleagues in the Behavioral Medicine Program evaluate and treat more than 1500 patients with psychosomatic problems, functional neurologic, neuro-otologic, and GI disorders, and cancer and cardiac distress each year. His research centers on problems at the interface of neurology, otology, and psychiatry. He is best known for investigations of chronic dizziness. Dr. Staab received a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Northwestern University, Doctor of Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh, and Master of Science in bioengineering from Carnegie-Mellon University.  He completed an internship in internal medicine and residency in psychiatry at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, followed by a fellowship in traumatic stress disorders at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. After finishing active service in the U. S. Navy Medical Corps, he was a member of the faculties of the University of Florida and University of Pennsylvania before being recruited to Mayo Clinic. Dr. Staab is author or co-author of more than 150 scientific articles, reviews, chapters, and abstracts.  He serves on the editorial boards of six scientific journals in psychosomatic medicine and otorhinolaryngology and has held leadership positions in three national and international professional societies.

Speaker: Dr. Hans Katzberg

Moderator: Dr. Suganth Suppiah

Dr. Hans Katzberg, M.D., M.Sc., FRCPC, is a neurologist and neuromuscular specialist at the Prosserman Center for Neuromuscular Diseases and is a clinical investigator at the Krembil Brain Institute and University Health Network in Toronto. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine (Neurology) and Associate Member of the Institute of Medical Sciences (IMS) and Centre for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (T-CAREIM) at the University of Toronto. Dr. Katzberg’s research and clinical interests include the assessment and treatment of neuropathy, muscle cramps and neuromuscular junction disorders including myasthenia gravis.

Speaker: Dr. Marcus Callister

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Dr. Marcus Callister is a clinical fellow in neurophysiology and movement disorders at the University of Toronto. He completed medical school at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center followed by neurology residency and a clinical neurophysiology - electromyography (EMG) fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. His major interest is in novel uses of quantitative movement neurophysiology techniques to aid clinical diagnosis and quantify response to treatments, including medications, rehabilitation, non-invasive brain stimulation, and other interventions. He and his wife Natalie are the happy parents of 4 energetic children.

Speaker: Dr. Vishu Karthikeyan

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Dr. Vishu Karthikeyan is a 3rd-year neurosurgery resident at the University of Toronto. Prior to residency, he completed his Bachelor of Health Sciences degree at McMaster University and M.D at the University of British Columbia. 

Speakers: Dr. Christopher Witiw and Dr. Husain Shakil

Dr. Christopher Witiw (left), M.D., M.Sc., FRCSC, is a neurosurgeon and scientist at Unity Health Toronto and an assistant professor of neurosurgery at the University of Toronto. He is a researcher with extensive experience in health economic evaluations and database linkages for the purpose of health services research analyses. He has a specific research interest in artificial intelligence in clinical medicine for the purpose of optimizing efficiency and improving quality of care.

Dr. Husain Shakil (right), M.D., M.Sc., is a neurosurgery resident and surgeon scientist trainee at the University of Toronto. He is currently completing a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation. His research interests include health outcome evaluation and prediction using big data, and health process and delivery optimization using a combination of economic and statistical methods. His clinical interests are in the treatment and care of patients with spine pathology requiring surgical treatment, including oncologic, traumatic, and degenerative spine disease.

Speaker: Dr. Carolina Barnett-Tapia

Dr. Carolina Barnett-Tapia, M.D., Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto. She is a clinician-scientist at the University Health Network, Toronto, and Neurologist at the Prosserman Family neuromuscular clinic and the Elisabeth Raab neurofibromatosis clinic. She is a member of the Response Evaluation in Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis (REiNS) international collaboration, and member of the scientific council of the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America.

Dr. Barnett-Tapia’s main research interest is patient-centered outcomes and patient preference elicitation in patients with neuromuscular disorders and neurofibromatosis. This includes capturing patients’ perspectives on their symptoms and activity limitations and understanding their preferences regarding treatment, with the goal of incorporating patients’ views in clinical decision-making.

Speaker: Dr. Kevin Zuo

Dr. Kevin Zuo, M.D., M.A.Sc., grew up in Edmonton, AB where he completed medical school at the University of Alberta before embarking on residency training in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Toronto. During residency, he completed 2 years of basic science research investigating translational strategies for enhancing peripheral nerve regeneration (supervisors: Dr. Greg Borschel and Dr. Tessa Gordon). He obtained a Master of Applied Science from the Institute of Biomaterials & Biomedical Engineering. After his plastic surgery residency, he moved to Boston, USA to pursue subspecialty fellowship training in Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Zuo's clinical interests are in all aspects of hand, wrist, and peripheral nerve surgery, particularly reconstruction of fracture non-union or avascular necrosis with vascularized bone grafts, as well as management of peripheral nerve injuries with novel surgical methods to relieve pain and/or improve upper extremity function. His clinical interest also encompasses reconstructive surgery for facial paralysis after Bell’s palsy or acoustic neuroma resection. His research interests include novel methods of musculoskeletal imaging, peripheral nerve regeneration, vascularized composite allotransplantation, and patient reported outcomes.

Speaker: Dr. Max Lazar-Kurz

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Dr. Max Lazar-Kurz is a third-year resident in the Adult Neurology program at the University of Toronto. He is interested in neuromuscular medicine.

Speaker: Dr. Anton Fomenko

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Dr. Anton Fomenko is a stereotactic and functional neurosurgery fellow at the Toronto Western Hospital. He grew up in Estonia, Montreal, and Hamilton and is pursuing a career in deep brain stimulation and epilepsy surgery. He is a two-wheeled wanderer at heart and enjoys exploring the outdoors when he is not in the operating room.

Speaker: Dr. Amanda Guidon

Moderator: Dr. Carolina Barnett-Tapia

Dr. Amanda Guidon, M.D., M.P.H, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. She is the Chief of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine and Director of the Myasthenia Gravis Clinic at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Guidon’s research focuses on health outcomes and care innovation in myasthenia gravis and phenotyping and treatment of neurologic immune-related adverse events of cancer immunotherapies.

Speaker: Dr. Lawrence Korngut

Moderator: Dr. Hans Katzberg

Dr. Lawrence Korngut, M.D., M.Sc., FRCPC, is a neuromuscular neurologist at the Calgary Neuromuscular Program. Dr. Korngut serves as the Director, Innovation & Commercialization at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) where he facilitates the commercialization of new discoveries and technologies. He supports HBI scientists and clinicians through the tech transfer process to optimize commercialization success through out-licensing or new company formation. He has contributed to the HBI Innovation Strategy that includes the launch of the MIND Prize ($1M/year over 10 years funding high-risk high-reward neuroscience research) and UCeed Neuro (University of Calgary-based venture philanthropy investment fund). As an entrepreneur, Dr. Korngut co-founded Lumiio, a successful health data technology startup now operating health data programs in 18 countries.

Speaker: Dr. Divyanshu Dubey

Moderator: Dr. Hans Katzberg

Dr. Divyanshu Dubey, M.B.B.S., is an Associate Professor of Neurology and Laboratory Medicine & Pathology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN. His research focus is central and peripheral autoimmune neurological conditions. He has played an important role in the discovery of multiple neural specific autoantibody biomarkers, including KLHL11 IgG, LUZP4 IgG, Cavin-4 IgG, and SKOR2 IgG. He has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed articles in various journals.

Speakers: Dr. Richard Wennberg and Dr. Luis Garcia Dominguez

Richard Wennberg (left), M.D., Ph.D., FRCPC, is a neurologist who is internationally known for his work in electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG), epilepsy, mild traumatic brain injury (concussion), and autoimmune encephalitis. He is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto, past Chair of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Examination Board in Neurology, and past President of the Canadian League Against Epilepsy. He is the director of the clinical neurophysiology laboratory and Mitchell Goldhar MEG unit, Krembil Brain Institute, Toronto Western Hospital, and a member of the NHL/NHLPA Second Medical Opinion List. His research is focused on (a) exploring the neurophysiological mechanisms linking brain function and behavior, normal and abnormal, and (b) improving current understanding of the biophysical bases of clinical neurophysiology.

Luis Garcia Dominguez (right), Ph.D., is a scientist at the Toronto Western Hospital, clinical neurophysiology laboratory and Mitchell Goldhar magnetoencephalography (MEG) unit, primarily focused on locating epileptic seizure foci in the brain and evaluating the efficacy of beamformer analysis in epilepsy. His work includes studying seizure-related neuronal synchronization and understanding the limitations of MEG and electroencephalography (EEG) synchronization analysis techniques. He also researches cognitive function, including language, memory, and motor imagery, both in typical and pathological contexts such as autism, schizophrenia and dementia. He has developed tools such as a MATLAB interface for signal processing and cluster-based statistical methods for analyzing brain responses.

Speaker: Dr. Jessica Jung

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Jessica Jung is currently a second-year neurosurgery resident at the University of Toronto with a clinical interest in vascular neurosurgery.

Speaker: Dr. Sarah MacIsaac

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Sarah MacIsaac is a third-year resident in the Neurology program at the University of Toronto. She is interested in multiple sclerosis and women's neurology.

Speaker: Dr. Alberto Gil

Moderator: Dr. Pascal Mosimann

Dr. Alberto Gil, M.D., is an interventional neuroradiologist at the Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla, Spain. After completing his M.D. and radiology training in Madrid, Spain, Dr. Gil joined the Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias as an interventional neuroradiologist, where he established their interventional neuroradiology centre. During his tenure from 2009 to 2012 at the Hospital Clínico San Carlos de Madrid, he co-founded and led their INR centre, the first 24/7 stroke treatment centre in Madrid.

Dr. Gil is an accomplished expert in various intracranial vascular pathologies, specializing in the treatment of complex AVMs and aneurysms. Since 2003, he has performed over 1000 thrombectomies, and has treated more than 400 aneurysms and 100 brain AVMs.

Speaker: Dr. René Chapot

Moderator: Dr. Pascal Mosimann

Dr. René Chapot, M.D, is Head of the Department of Neuroradiology & Endovascular Therapy at Alfried Krupp Krankenhaus in Essen, Germany. He completed his radiology training in Paris, France, where he subsequently served as a Professor of Neuroradiology at the University of Limoges, France from 2003 to 2006.

Internationally renowned, Dr. Chapot specializes in the endovascular treatment of cerebrovascular disorders, encompassing stroke, aneurysm, dural fistulae, and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). He has made significant contributions to the advancement of concepts and techniques, holding two device patents and authoring more than 120 publications. Dr. Chapot has wrote numerous books and book chapters, sharing his expertise through international lectures and serving as faculty at various courses and symposia.

Speakers: Drs. Shelley Forrest, Ivan Martinez-Valbuena, Satoshi Tanikawa, & Gabor Kovacs

Moderator: Dr. Gabor Kovacs

Dr. Shelley Forrest (top-left) is a Senior Scientific Associate at the Krembil Brain Institute (KBI) and the Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases (CNRD), University of Toronto. She holds a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Sydney and received postdoctoral training in the Discipline of Pathology at the University of Sydney. Dr. Forrest was then recruited to the Dementia Research Centre, Macquarie University, as the Neuropathology group leader before moving to Toronto. Her research focuses on the neuropathology and disease mechanisms underlying progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), frontotemporal dementia, aging, and a range of neurodegenerative disorders. In particular, her work involves the investigation of protein abnormalities and cell types affected to determine the selective regional and cellular vulnerability in these disorders, and associated clinicopathological correlations.

Dr. Ivan Martinez-Valbuena (top-right) is a Scientific Associate at the KBI and the Tanz CNRD, University of Toronto. He earned his Ph.D. in neurology from the University of Navarra (Spain). In 2020, he joined Dr. Gabor Kovacs team in Toronto as a postdoctoral fellow. Currently, his research focuses on the use of seeding amplification assays and other molecular techniques to develop novel biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases.

Dr. Satoshi Tanikawa (bottom-left) is a general Pathologist from Japan. He obtained an M.D. at Hirosaki University in 2013, and earned a Doctorate in Medicine at Hokkaido University in 2018. He specializes in molecular biology and tissue engineering.

Dr. Gabor G. Kovacs (bottom-right), M.D. Ph.D., is Professor of Neuropathology and Neurology at the University of Toronto. He is Consultant Neuropathologist and Neurologist at the University Health Network (UHN), Rossy Chair for PSP Research, and a Principal Investigator at the Tanz CNRD and KBI. Dr. Kovacs is the Co-Director of the Rossy Program for PSP Research. Dr. Kovacs completed his medical training at the Semmelweis University (Budapest, Hungary) where he specialized in Neurology and Neuropathology and obtained a Ph.D. in Neuroscience. From 2004 to 2007, he was the Head of the Department of Neuropathology at the National Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Budapest, Hungary. From 2007 to 2019, he was an Associate Professor at the Institute of Neurology at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. He was the leader of the Hungarian (2004-2019) and Austrian (2011-2019) Reference Center for Human Prion Diseases. Dr. Kovacs has also trained at Indiana University (2007) and University of Pennsylvania (2016 and 2017) as a visiting professor/scholar. His major research interest is the neuropathology of neurodegenerative diseases to identify early biomarkers and therapy targets. He has published more than 350 peer-reviewed papers and edited three books on Neuropathology. ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3841-5511

Speaker: Dr. Hugo Andrade Barazarte

Moderator: Dr. Mojgan Hodaie

Dr. Hugo Andrade Barazarte obtained his medical degree and began neurosurgery residency training at the Universidad Centro-occidenral Lisandro Alvarado, Barquisimeto – Venezuela in 2006. In 2012, he completed his training as a neurosurgeon, becoming staff of the University Hospital Antonio Maria Pineda in Venezuela.

In February 2013, Dr. Andrade Barazarte joined the University of Helsinki, Neurosurgery department under the direction of Prof. Juha Hernesniemi as a cerebrovascular/skull base fellow and Ph.D. student.

After completing his fellowship in Helsinki, Dr. Andrade joined the Toronto Western Hospital as a cerebrovascular clinical fellow to expand his knowledge in vascular and skull base pathologies. In June 2016, Dr. Andrade Barazarte obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Helsinki – Finland. Between 2016-2018, Dr. Andrade Barazarte was a staff neurosurgeon at Mannheim University Hospital in Germany. From February 2019 – December 2021, he worked as an Associate Professor at the Henan Provincial People’s Hospital in China and as co-director of the Moyamoya disease research and treatment center. He was recruited to the Division of Neurosurgery with a staff appointment at Toronto Western Hospital and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on the surgical management of ruptured and unruptured aneurysms, AVMs, Moyamoya disease and revascularization procedures, dural arteriovenous fistulae.

Speaker: Laavanya Dharmakulaseelan

Laavanya Dharmakulaseelan is a third-year resident in the Adult Neurology program at the University of Toronto. She completed her M.D. and Masters of Engineering at the University of Toronto. She is interested in pursuing a fellowship in stroke neurology.

Speaker: Dr. Ali Moghaddamjou

Ali Moghaddamjou grew up in Vancouver and finished his undergraduate studies and medical school at UBC. He moved to Toronto in 2016 to start his residency in Neurosurgery. The move was partly inspired by the academic resources available to residents at UofT. Within neurosurgery, he has developed an interest in the care of spinal cord injury (SCI) patients.

Ali joined the clinical investigator program under the supervision of Dr. Michael Fehlings with the overall goal of addressing clinical knowledge gaps in the care of SCI patients. He has now finished his time off on Ph.D. and is currently one of the senior residents on the neurosurgery service at TWH.

Speaker: Dr. Laura Silveira-Moriyama

Dr. Laura Silveira-Moriyama is an Associate Professor of Neurology at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil. She graduated and trained as a neurologist in Brazil, and completed a Ph.D. and clinical fellowship in Movement Disorders under the supervision of Prof. Andrew Lees at the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology. She is currently the coordinator of the Movement Disorders Service at UNICAMP overseeing the care of children and adults with Movement Disorders.

Speakers: Dr. Anthony E. Lang, Dr. Carmela Tartaglia & Dr. Gabor G. Kovacs

Dr. Anthony E. Lang (top-left), OC, M.D., FRCPC, FAAN, FCAHS, FRSC, is Professor and previous Director of the Division of Neurology at the University of Toronto. He holds the Jack Clark Chair for Parkinson’s Disease Research and the Lily Safra Chair in Movement Disorders. He is the Director of the Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease, the Rossy Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) Program and the Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto Western Hospital and the University of Toronto. He is one of the most highly cited investigators in the field of Movement Disorders with more than 980 peer-reviewed publications and h-index of 180. His awards and distinctions include: Officer of the Order of Canada, 2010; Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, 2011; Honorary Member of the International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society (MDS) 2014; the first MDS Pan-American Section Leadership Award, 2017; the Weston Brain Institute International Outstanding Achievement Award, 2018; the Dean’s Lifetime Achievement Award for global impact from University of Toronto, 2020 and the Jay Van Andel Award for Outstanding Achievement in Parkinson's Disease Research and the Margolese National Brain Disorders Prize, 2022. In 2023, Research.com included him in their Ranking of Best Scientists in the field of Medicine.

Dr. Carmela Tartaglia (top-right), M.D., FRCPC, is a clinician-scientist at the University Health Network and University of Toronto. She maintains a cognitive/behavioral clinic within the UHN Memory Clinic where she sees patients with neurodegenerative diseases and those with multiple concussions who are at risk of developing a neurodegenerative disease. She is also part of the Rossy PSP Centre. She holds the Marion and Gerald Soloway Chair in Brain Injury and Concussion Research. She uses a multi-modal approach that combines imaging and biofluid biomarkers to better diagnose and understand the pathological substrates that cause cognitive, behavioral, and motoric dysfunction. The goal of her research program is to develop biomarkers for early detection of disease to bring precision medicine and targeted, early treatments to her patients. 

Dr. Gabor G. Kovacs (bottom), M.D., Ph.D., is Professor of Neuropathology and Neurology at the University of Toronto. He is Consultant Neuropathologist and Neurologist at the University Health Network (UHN), Rossy Chair for PSP Research, and a Principal Investigator at the Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Disease and Krembil Brain Institute. He is also the Co-Director of the Rossy Program for PSP Research. Dr. Kovacs completed his medical training at the Semmelweis University (Budapest, Hungary) where he specialized in Neurology and Neuropathology and obtained a Ph.D. in Neuroscience. From 2004 to 2007, he was the Head of the Department of Neuropathology at the National Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Budapest, Hungary. From 2007 to 2019, he was an Associate Professor at the Institute of Neurology at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. He was the leader of the Hungarian (2004-2019) and Austrian (2011-2019) Reference Center for Human Prion Diseases. Dr. Kovacs has also trained at Indiana University (2007) and University of Pennsylvania (2016 and 2017) as a visiting professor/scholar. His major research interest is the neuropathology of neurodegenerative diseases to identify early biomarkers and therapy targets. He has published more than 350 peer-reviewed papers and edited three books on Neuropathology. 

Speaker: Dr. Nikolai Gil Reyes

Dr. Nikolai Gil Reyes completed his M.D. degree and residency at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine – Philippine General Hospital. Currently, he is doing his clinical fellowship at the Toronto Western Hospital Movement Disorders Centre. He also recently started his M.Sc. in Medical Science at the University of Toronto. His main clinical and research interest is in genetic movement disorders, specifically chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome-associated movement disorders.

Speaker: Dr. Alexandra Boogers

Moderator: Dr. Lorraine Kalia

Dr. Alexandra Boogers completed her medical school and residency in Neurology at Antwerp University in Belgium. Her Ph.D. was stimulation paradigms in essential tremor patients with deep brain stimulation (DBS), at KU Leuven, Belgium. Currently, she is a clinical fellow at Toronto Western Hospital in the DBS for Movement Disorders program.

Resident Speaker: Dr. Anuj Rastogi

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Anuj Rastogi is a PGY-3 adult neurology resident at the University of Toronto. He completed his undergraduate degree at McMaster University, his M.Sc in transcranial magnetic stimulation at TWH, and medical school in Dublin Ireland.

Resident Speaker: Dr. Vincent Ye

Moderator: Dr. Elizabeth Slow

Vincent is currently a PGY-5 neurosurgery resident at the University of Toronto. Prior to residency, he completed his undergraduate studies at McGill University, followed by his M.D. degree at the University of British Columbia. An avid athlete, Vincent played varsity soccer for the McGill Redmen and completed two Ironman distance triathlons in medical school. His research interests include neuro-oncology and skull base oncology.

Speaker: Dr. Alexandre Boutet

Originally from Quebec city, Dr. Boutet completed his medical school training at McGill University and developed his passion for neuroscience at the Montreal Neurological Institute. He pursued a residency in radiology and a Ph.D. in brain modulation at the University of Toronto, followed by a neuroradiology fellowship. He now works as a neuroradiologist at the University Health Network in Toronto. His main interest is to use neuroimaging to improve patient care. Outside of work, he enjoys travelling and social gatherings with friends.

Speaker: Dr. Jürgen Germann

Dr. Jürgen Germann studied Psychology at Freiburg University and then moved to Montreal for his Ph.D. investigating the functional architecture of the human brain at the Montreal Neurological Institute under the supervision of Dr. Petrides. Dr. Germann is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the laboratory of Dr. Lozano at the Krembil Research Institute. Making use of his expertise in imaging and advanced data modelling, statistics and machine learning, he studies the correlates and predictors of outcomes of neuromodulatory treatments with a special focus on Alzheimer’s disease.