Birgit Ertl-Wagner, MD, PhD, MHBA (Principal Investigator)

Photo of Dr. Birgit Betina Ertl-WagnerDr. Ertl-Wagner is the Derek Harwood-Nash Chair in Medical Imaging, Division Chief of Neuroradiology and Associate Chief of the Department of Diagnostic Imaging at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, as well as a Senior Associate Scientist in the Neurosciences & Mental Health Program at SickKids’ Research Institute. She is also Professor and Vice Chair, Research in the Department of Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Ertl-Wagner did her residency and fellowship training in radiology and neuroradiology at the University Hospitals of Heidelberg, Marburg and Munich. Following her training, she joined the staff at the Department of Radiology of the Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich, where she subsequently became section chief of magnetic resonance imaging and led the areas of paediatric neuroradiology and head and neck imaging. Prior to relocating to Toronto in 2018, she was Professor of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, executive staff physician and Chief of Oncologic Imaging at the Department of Radiology of the Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich.

Dr. Ertl-Wagner´s research is characterized by a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative approach with a focus on translation between basic science and clinical research. She has worked with a broad spectrum of methodological approaches, including phase contrast imaging, functional MR imaging, diffusion tensor imaging, MR spectroscopy and various perfusion techniques. Dr. Ertl-Wagner is Deputy Editor for the journal Radiology, associate editor for the journals AJNR and Neuroradiology and reviewer for numerous scientific journals and grant funding agencies. She also serves on numerous committees of national and international scientific societies. She has received numerous awards including the Therese von Bayern Award for scientific excellence and the Marie-Curie-Ring of the German Radiological Society.

Matthias Wagner, MD, EDiR, EDiNR (Senior Researcher)

Photo of Dr. Matthias WagnerDr. Matthias Wagner is a radiologist, adult and paediatric neuroradiologist, and is currently a senior researcher with the Ertl-Wagner research group in the Neurosciences & Mental Health Program at The Hospital for Sick Children. Matthias graduated from the Technical University of Munich, Germany in 2012 with a degree in medicine. He trained as a radiologist at the Kantonsspital Baden and University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland, and obtained the specialist title in Radiology in 2018. Subsequently, he completed fellowships in paediatric and adult neuroradiology at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Since his time as a Research Fellow at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, Matthias has been actively involved in paediatric neuroimaging research with numerous publications in this field. He currently leads several projects on quantitative neuroimaging and its applicability in clinical neuroradiology.

Logi Vidarsson, PhD (Medical Physicist)

Photo of Logi Vidarsson, PhDLogi earned his PhD from Stanford University in 2006. He did a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Chris Macgowan at The Hospital for Sick Children, followed by a stint working as an MR imaging physicist at SickKids. Logi has also worked in the private sector, before re-joining SickKids in 2017.

Logi’s research interest relate to all things dealing with the inner workings of MRI – from building MRI systems to developing low level software to employing artificial intelligence to analyze clinical data. 

Min Sheng, MD (Research Fellow)

Photo of Min Sheng, MDMin is a research fellow specialized in brain imaging and image analysis. She obtained MD degree in China and practiced as a radiologist for seven years. She has been working in neuroscience research since 2012, in fields including functional MRI and neonatal brain imaging.

Her current research work focuses on using novel brain imaging to predict stroke risk and outcome in childhood, and exploring application of artificial intelligence in paediatric neuroimaging.

Mitra Naseri, MD (Research Fellow)

Photo of Mitra Naseri, MDDr. Mitra Naseri, is a research fellow in neuroscience at The Hospital for Sick Children. She is a radiologist, highly interested in paediatric neuroradiology, paediatric mental health and the role of neuroimaging in the assessment of mental health disorders in children and adolescents. She is also engaged and fascinated with enhancing the diagnosis and follow up of brain tumours by implementing artificial intelligence in medical imaging.

Dr. Naseri is a qualified consultant radiologist by UK GMC since 2013 and has had many years of international work experience in the field. She worked as an assistant professor in Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, from 2002 to 2009 where she also did her radiology residency. During her time in Iran’s academia, she was highly involved in academic and teaching activities with radiology residents and medical students. Dr. Mitra Naseri received her top ranked medical diploma from Shiraz University.