Academic Qualifications
Biography
Katherine is a clinical research assistant at Konofagou Lab and a prior intern since 2018. She manages a phase-1 clinical study using focused ultrasound (FUS) to noninvasively open the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and reduce amyloid progression in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Specifically, she performs medical image and signals processing, recruits patients, collaborates with the team to deliver treatment to patients, and handles regulatory affairs with the FDA and institutional IRB.
She also manages new studies using FUS to treat Parkinson's disease patients and additional AD patients. She also assists studies with collaborating researchers, using FUS to facilitate chemotherapeutic delivery in pediatric diffuse midline glioma patients.
Her independent project focuses on training deep-learning networks to predict successful BBB openings in real-time, analyzing ultrasound signals during treatment and prior to the conventional method using MRI scans.
Her previous projects include real-time ultrasound signal processing and mapping, as well as NHP research in preclinical studies that translated to current clinical trials.
Awards
- Young Investigator Award at the 8th International Symposium on Focused Ultrasound by the Focused Ultrasound Foundation (FUSF)
- 2021 Distinguished Student Leadership Award by Columbia Engineering Alumni Association (CEAA)
- Third Prize at 2021 Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams (DEBUT) Challenge by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) of NIH
- 2021 Columbia Biomedical Engineering Top Senior Design Team member