Team

Andrei is a mathematician and computer scientist who is happy to apply his skills in medical research. His main interest is to search for patterns in genetic disease data by using various statistical and computational methods. He has many years of experience in data analysis and bioinformatics, and has managed several large-scale, multi-team research projects. His typical tasks involve developing computational software, writing research papers, collaborating with other biomedical teams, supervising students, and teaching. Andrei holds a PhD in mathematical computer science. His top pursuits outside SickKids are outdoor activities, working as a medical first responder, and watching too many indie movies.

Lauren Erdman is the Project Manager for the new Machine Learning Core within the CCM and a PhD student in computer science at the University of Toronto (U of T) under the supervision of Anna Goldenberg. Previously, she completed a M.Sc. in computer science and a M.Sc. in biostatistics at U of T under the supervision of Anna Goldenberg and Lisa Strug, respectively. Her research is primarily focused on developing and applying machine learning methods for data integration and improved translational discovery in the areas of population genetics, genome biology, and complex disease. More recently, Lauren has become involved in the development of clinical decision support systems for Canadian hospitals. She is excited to see what opportunities the availability of larger data, increasingly digital medical records, and powerful predictive algorithms will open up for improving clinical care.

Kimberly joined CCM in June 2021 as a Project Coordinator. She plays an integral part within the team, by engaging in duties to ensure efficient operation of the facility that help meet the business and strategic direction of the SickKids Research Institute. Kimberly has 20+ years working in healthcare, most of which was spent supporting the business functions of various departments at University Health Network. She recently received her certification in project management and is currently enrolled in a BBA program.

Alper received his B.Sc. in molecular biology and economics from Brown University and his PhD in bioinformatics from University of Massachusetts Medical School. His thesis work focused on regulation and substrate selection of mRNA decay pathways and their interactions with the translation machinery. In addition to his thesis work, Alper has been involved in several projects in collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital investigating the effects of mindfulness interventions in physician burnout by analyzing survey and smartwatch data. He joined the CCM in August of 2018 where his responsibilities include bioinformatics pipeline development, next-generation sequencing data analysis, statistical analysis and web application development. Alper's main research interest is applying machine learning methods to elucidate fundamental patterns in biological data and how these patterns relate to disease phenotypes.

I did my bachelors in instrumentation & control engineering and masters in biomedical engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Varanasi, India. I pursued my PhD in neuroscience from William & Mary, US where my dissertation focused on studying the neural control of breathing. I have been always intrigued in the integration of biological sciences and engineering. My interest in the field of bioinformatics began when I became part of two transcriptomics studies on breathing-related neurons. I am passionate about genomics, big data analytics and communicating scientific research to people from diverse background. In my spare time, I enjoy painting and baking.

Madeline Couse received a B.Sc. in honours biology from the University of Waterloo, after which she moved West to complete an M.Sc. in genome science and technology from the University of British Columbia. There, she developed an interest in rare Mendelian disorders in children and gained expertise in whole genome analysis, including structural variant analysis from paired-end sequenced data. After graduating, she had the opportunity to work as a genome analyst for clinical research sequencing studies at British Columbia Children's Hospital. She joined the CCM team in March 2020 after some time working at a company specializing in personalized medicine in cancer. She is a devoted cyclist, an avid reader, an often-unsuccessful gardener, and an occasional crafter.

Aarthi joined CCM in June 2020, and works on pipeline development for next-generation sequencing data analysis. Prior to joining CCM, she worked as a bioinformatician for five years in Singapore on analysis and pipeline development for detection of anti-microbial resistance in mycobacterium tuberculosis and studying transcriptional regulation in plasmodium falciparum. She received her M.Sc. in bioinformatics from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore in 2014 and B.Tech. in information technology from Anna University, India in 2009. Outside work, she enjoys yoga, hiking, and reading.

Lauren joined the CCM in November 2020. She currently works on RNA-sequencing data analysis pipeline development. Lauren obtained both her bachelor of science degree in biochemistry and master's of health sciences degree in medical genomics from the University of Toronto. She is interested in developing bioinformatics tools to facilitate biological research and genomics data processing. In her spare time, she enjoys playing badminton and various forms of media.

Michael graduated from the University of Waterloo with a bachelor of computer science in honours computer science. He pursued an option in bioinformatics to join his interests in biological sciences and computing. Since graduation, Michael continued to diversify his interests in the other branches of computer science. In late 2016, he worked at the CCM as a part of the university's co-op program. Michael rejoined the CCM in February 2021 as part of the bioinformatics team. Outside of the CCM, Michael spent his time tackling his growing backlog of video games and technical books.

Steven completed his master’s in physics at the University of Toronto. He joined the CCM in March of 2018. His interests include high performance computing, mathematics, and science of all kinds. He currently develops and runs magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analysis pipelines for the Neonatal Neuroscience Team at SickKids, with a focus on functional MRI, diffusion tensor imaging, and machine learning methods. He has also been involved in the development of pipelines for analysis of genetic data, database management, and web design.

Andrew graduated with a B.A.Sc. in electrical engineering from the University of Toronto. He got his start in high-performance computing systems while he was there building a small compute grid to run fluid dynamics simulations for the BlueSky Solar Racing Team. He is currently part of the CCM High Performance Computing Facility, responsible for managing and supporting the compute cluster. Outside of work he spends his time kayaking, building things and practicing violin.

Pamela obtained her Bachelors degree in Molecular Genetics and masters degree in Medical Genomics both at University of Toronto. During her graduate studies, she developed a strong interest in bioinformatics and pipeline development for Next Generation Sequencing technologies. In her free time, she enjoys the company of her cat, baking and going for walks.

Nour received her bachelor of science in molecular biology from the University of Toronto, and is currently a master's of health science candidate in medical genomics, also at the University of Toronto. During her graduate studies, she developed a strong interest in bioinformatics, particularly in the use and development of -omics pipelines, which she is pursuing as part of her capstone practicum at the CCM.  In her free time, she enjoys reading, going for long walks, and watching sports.

Stan He joined the CCM team in July 2021. Previously, he worked as a machine learning engineer at luci.ai, where he helped build the route optimization platform for food delivery. Stan also has more than eight years of experience in academic research in the field of geophysics using numerical simulation and seismic tomography through programming languages such as Python and Bash under the Linux system. In his spare time, Stan likes to go hiking, play badminton, hang out with friends, and expand on his skills using various online resources.

Anjali Jain received her bachelor of technology degree in bioinformatics from Amity University, India. During her undergraduate studies, she also worked at a bioinformatics start-up where she was involved in software development. Her zest to explore the field of genomics led her to the Medical Genomics program at the University of Toronto, where she is currently enrolled in her final year. During her graduate studies, she volunteered as a Genome Analyst in the GENCOV research study at Mount Sinai Health System. She is passionate about precision medicine, bioinformatics and developing tools to analyze genomic data which furthered her resolve to pursue her career at CCM. In her spare time, Anjali enjoys arts and craft and dancing.