Faculty
Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose
PhD, PT
Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, PhD, PT, is a Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy, and Canada Research Chair in Physical Activity, Mobility, and Cognitive Health. She is the Research Director of the Vancouver General Hospital Falls Prevention Clinic (www.fallsclinic.ca) and Director of the Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory (https://cogmob.rehab.med.ubc.ca). Dr. Liu-Ambrose is an associate member of the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health.
Dr. Liu-Ambrose has a leadership role in two major Canadian Institutes of Health Research initiatives in aging – the Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging (CLSA) and the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging (CCNA). Recognition of Dr. Liu-Ambrose’s research excellence include her national research chair award (Canada Research Chair), 2 national salary awards (Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada), 1 provincial salary award (Michael Smith Foundation of Canada), and 2 institution research excellent awards (Faculty of Medicine Distinguished Achievement in Clinical Research and Peter Wall Scholar Award). She also received the Royal Society of Canada’s Alice Wilson Award as a postdoctoral fellow.
Dr. Liu-Ambrose is known internationally for her work in randomized controlled trials of exercise with cognitive and mobility outcomes in older adults. Her research findings have been implemented in health authorities, translated into a provincial-wide program, and influenced international practice guidelines to promote healthy aging.
Postdoctoral Fellows
Cindy Barha
PhD
CIHR and MSFHR/PARF Postdoctoral fellow
Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia
Cindy Barha is a postdoctoral research fellow supervised by Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose. Cindy’s primary research interests focus on the interactions between the stress and reproductive axes in determining developmental trajectories across the lifespan, with a concentration on how these interactions influence normal age-associated cognitive decline as well as risk for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease. Currently, she is interested in understanding how sex differences in the cognitive-enhancing ability of exercise training are related to hormones and genotype. Cindy received a PhD in Behavioural Neuroscience from the University of British Columbia. She completed a CIHR-funded postdoctoral fellowship in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University and the a joint fellowship from MSFHR and the Pacific Alzheimer Research Foundation (PARF) at the University of British Columbia. She recently received a 3-year joint fellowship from Brain Canada and Alzheimer Association of USA.
Deborah Jehu
PhD
MSFHR Postdoctoral fellow
Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia
The objective of Deborah’s research has been to generate new insights into improving therapeutic intervention techniques, develop novel cognitive and mobility assessment approaches, and contribute to increasing the knowledge on compensatory strategies across numerous populations with cognitive and mobility impairment. Deborah completed her PhD at the University of Ottawa, and has collaborated with numerous researchers, interdisciplinary healthcare professionals, and industry partners in Ontario, Hong Kong, and Portland, Oregon. Now funded by the MSFHR and working with Dr. Liu-Ambrose, Deborah is studying the effect of therapeutic interventions with the use of fMRI.
Contact: deb.jehu@ubc.ca
PhD Trainees
Elizabeth Dao
PhD
Previously, Liz completed her BA (Hons) in Psychology at the University of British Columbia. In her undergraduate training, she looked at the role of mind wandering in visual attention using event related potentials (ERPs) with Dr. Todd Handy. After completing her undergraduate degree, Liz worked as a coordinator on several research studies investigating the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation in promoting neuroplasticity and motor recovery after stroke with Dr. Lara Boyd. Currently, Liz is a PhD candidate under the supervision of Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose. Her PhD work focuses on the pathophysiology of small vessel ischemic disease and how it may affect cognitive and physical function in older adults. Specifically, Liz utilizes conventional and novel neuroimaging methods to assess the role of demyelination, white matter hyperintensities, and cerebral amyloid deposition in cognitive and physical impairments. In addition, her PhD work investigates the role of lifestyle interventions, such as aerobic exercise, in modifying small vessel ischemic pathology to improve clinical outcomes for older adults with mild cognitive impairment.
Contact: lizdao@hiphealth.ca
Lisanne ten Brinke
PhD
Rachel Crockett
PhD
Rachel Crockett is a PhD student in the Rehabilitation Sciences program under the supervision of Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose. Previously, she completed her B.Sc. in Psychology and her M.Sc. in Brain Imaging and Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Birmingham in the UK. Her research focus is in motor neuroscience and the effect of exercise on the structure and function of the brain.
Contact: rachel.crockett@hiphealth.ca
Ryan Falck
PhD
MSc Trainees
Lauren Marcotte
B.Sc.
Lauren Marcotte is an MSc Student in the Rehabilitation Sciences program, and is studying under the supervision of Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose. She previously completed her BSc in Exercise Science at the Ohio State University, working under Dr. Brian Focht in the Exercise and Behavioural Medicine Laboratory. She is primarily interested in studying the role of resistance exercise in the promotion of healthy aging.
Contact: lauren.marcotte@alumni.ubc.ca
Research Coordinator
Stephanie Doherty
B.A.
Research Assistants
Madison Welch
B.Kin.
Madison completed her Bachelor of Kinesiology degree at the University of the Fraser Valley. Within the Lab she coordinates and conducts the exercise intervention classes. In her spare time she can be found hiking with her dog, watching classic movies and having fun with friends and family.
Cheyenne Ghag
B.Sc.
Joey Chan
B.Sc.
Patrick Chan
B.Sc.
Patrick completed his Bachelor of Science in Integrated Sciences at the University of British Columbia. In the Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, he is mainly working on the Buying Time Study. He has an interest in medicine, hoping to pursue a career as a geriatrician. In his spare time, Patrick also enjoys playing the piano, listening to music, running, hiking, and playing soccer.
Rebecca Harper
B.Sc.
Esther Au
B.Sc.
Daria Tai
B.Sc.
Nancy Rutherford
B.Sc.
Connor Sullivan
B.Sc.
Undergraduates
Lauren Barnett
Daniel Backhouse
Daniel is an undergraduate student at the University of British Columbia completing his degree in Engineering Physics. Within the lab he works on pre-processing data for ongoing research studies. Daniel is interested in pursuing a career in medicine. In his spare time he enjoys playing piano, boxing and hiking.
Albert Ho
Albert is an undergraduate student completing his Bachelor’s in Kinesiology at the University of British Columbia. He is currently working as a research assistant within the Vitality and Factorial exercise studies. Albert is hoping to pursue a career in physical therapy. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, playing basketball and staying active.
Mikayla Ogrodniczuk
Mikayla is an undergraduate student at the University of British Columbia and is completing her Bachelor degree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences. She is currently working as a research assistant for the Synergic and Factorial exercise studies. Mikayla is hoping to pursue a career in sport medicine. Mikayla is also a member of the UBC Women’s Hockey Team. In her spare, Mikayla enjoys spending time outdoors, especially biking, hiking, and playing beach volleyball.
Mary Zhao
Mary completed her BSc. in Integrated Sciences at the University of British Columbia, specializing in Neuroscience and Physiology. She first joined the lab as a directed studies student and completed a research project on compliance to home-based exercise programs. She is now predominantly working in the Falls Clinic, running assessments for the Cohort study. Mary will be starting the MD program at UBC in the fall, and hopes to pursue a career as a geriatrician. In her spare time, Mary enjoys attending spin classes, doing yoga, and spending time with friends and family.Alumni
Masters Students
Tracy Dignum, PT, M.Ed
Walid Al Keridy, MD
PhD Students
Liang Hsu, PhD
Lindsay Nagamatsu, PhD
Niousha Bolandzadeh, PhD
Jennifer David, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellows
Research Associates
John Best, PhD
Jennifer C Davis, PhD