News

Kendra Loedige joins the NODD lab as a MSc student at Western University this fall. Welcome to the lab, Kendra!

Azlan Ahmad joins the NODD lab as an undergraduate student in Computer Science at Western University and will assist the lab in all of its computational needs. Welcome, Azlan!

NODD lab MSc student Esther Choi is recognized for her research excellence by the Korean Canadian Science Scholarship Foundation. Congratulations, Esther!

Dr. Abdalla Albeely, postdoctoral fellow in the NODD lab, received the Best Talk Award at the 2023 University of Guelph Neuroscience Day. Well deserved, Abdalla!

Former PhD candidate and now Dr. Hayley Thorpe successfully defended her PhD thesis on May 2nd at the University of Guelph. Her thesis, "Cell Adhesion Molecule 2 and Cannabis Use Vulnerability: Insights from a Neuropsychopharmacological Assessment of a Knockout Mouse Model", is available to read on the University of Guelph Atrium. Hayley will continue to work in the NODD lab as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology at Western University. Congratulations, Dr. Thorpe!

PhD candidate Hayley Thorpe receives a competitive CIHR Postdoctoral Fellowship ($135,000), which will support her postdoctoral research over the next three years. Congratulations, Hayley!

Western University awards NODD lab leader Dr. Jibran Khokhar with a 2023 Dean's Award of Excellence in the category of Research and Innovation (Early Career, Basic Research). The award is testament to Dr. Khokhar's excellent lab leadership. Well deserved!

Two MSc students, Iman Aziz and Esther Choi, receive the competitive CGS-M scholarships through NSERC, valued at $17,500. These scholarships will support Iman's and Esther's Master's research at Western University. Congratulations, Iman and Esther!

NODD lab PhD student Pedro Marinho is awarded an ACB Travel Award that will support his attendance at high-impact conferences, allowing him to gain valuable feedback on his research. Congratulations, Pedro!

Aysha Abdul joins the NODD lab this month as a work study student. Aysha is a bioinformatics student at Western University and will be helping postdoctoral fellow Dr. Patrick McCunn with neuroimaging analysis. Welcome, Aysha!

Dr. Jibran Khokhar and Hayley Thorpe (PhD Candidate) attend the prestigious American College of Neuropsychopharmacology conference this year in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA. On top of presenting their newest research, Jibran is granted ACNP Associate Membership status. Congratulations, Jibran!

The newly appointed Dr. Bryan Jenkins crafted a masterful PhD thesis and defended it on October 21, 2022. This marks the first ever doctoral candidate to successfully complete their PhD in the NODD lab! His thesis, "Cannabis Differentially Disrupts Neural Circuit Oscillatory Dynamics and Sensory Filtering in Rats: Implications for Schizophrenia", is available to read on the University of Guelph Atrium. Bryan will now uptake a position as postdoctoral fellow at John Hopkins University School of Medicine under the supervision of Dr. Elise Weerts and Dr. Cassie Moore. Congratulations, Dr. Jenkins!

NODD lab PhD Candidate Jude Frie wins the Dr. Hubert van Tol Travel Fellowship ($1,000) to support his attendance at leading conferences so that he may disseminate his research across the wider scientific community. Well deserved, Jude!

NODD lab PhD Candidate Jude Frie has his research article, "Addiction-Related Outcomes of Nicotine and Alcohol Co-use: New Insights Following the Rise in Vaping", highlighted by the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research as an Editor's Choice article. Keep up the great work, Jude!

Dr. Abdalla Albeely joins the NODD lab this month as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at Western University. Great to have you on the team, Abdalla!

Iman Aziz joins the NODD lab this month and will begin her MSc at the University of Guelph's Department of Biomedical Sciences in the fall. Welcome to the lab, Iman!

Hayley Thorpe, a NODD lab PhD candidate, is awarded a Canadian Consortium for the Investigation of Cannabinoids Student Research Spotlight Award for her doctoral work investigating the genetics of cannabis use with a preclinical model. She will have the opportunity to present her work at the upcoming CCIC conference and is awarded $1,000.

NODD postdoctoral fellow Dr. Patrick McCunn wins the Stratas Foundation Matthew Burke Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship, valued at $5,000, will support Patrick's research using neuroimaging techniques in preclinical models to help understand the biology of mental illness.

Jessica Ruffolo, an MSc in the NODD lab, passes her MSc with flying colours on January 10, 2022. Her thesis, "Long-Term Effects of Adolescent Alcohol and Vapourized Nicotine Co-Use on Behaviour and Cognition", is available to read on the University of Guelph Atrium.

How time flies! From a lab of just Dr. Khokhar and a few graduate students, the NODD lab has become a huge network of past and present researchers across all stages in their careers. We have seen many successes over the last four years and look forward to many more. Congratulations to the NODD lab!

This week, Dr. Jibran Khokhar was hired as an Associate Professor at Western University in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology in the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry. This means that the NODD lab will become a blended family -- some team members will transition to Western University while others complete their work at the University of Guelph until the lab fully moves to London, Ontario. The NODD lab will continue its diverse research on the neural and behavioural substrates of adolescent development, substance use, and mental illness. Congratulations to Jibran and the whole NODD lab!

Dr. Jibran Khokhar is promoted to Associate Professor and receives early tenure in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Guelph. Congratulations on this amazing achievement, Jibran!

NODD lab postdoctoral fellow Dr. Richard Quansah Amissah is awarded a MITACS Accelerated Fellowship, which will fund his research for the next two years. Congratulations, Richard!

Dr. Jibran Khokhar, Dr. Richard Quansah Amissah (Postdoctoral Fellow), Hayley Thorpe (PhD Candidate), and Bryan Jenkins (PhD Candidate) present their work at the 2021 Gordon Research Conference (GRC): Cannabinoids in the CNS in Ventura, California, USA. Trainees also attended the associated Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) leading up to the GRC.

The team received several recognitions of excellence at the conference! Dr. Khokhar was selected by conference attendees to become the Chair of the 2025 GRC. This means that at the 2023 GRC, he will also act as Vice Chair. Hayley Thorpe also received an award for being the Most Active Participant during the GRC Way to go, NODD lab!

Three new undergraduate students joined the NODD lab this year: Larissa Kouroukis, Omar Anany, and Sara Hussein. We welcome you to the team and look forward to showcasing your excellent work!

The Khokhar lab was successful in receiving the Alliance grant ($142,784) from the National Science and Engineering Research Council. This grant aims to test novel cannabis-derived compounds in rodents models of cannabis toxicity toward reducing cannabis-induced toxicosis in pets.  

The Khokhar lab received the Vaping Catalyst grant ($99,990) from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. The goal of this grant is to compare the developmental differences in the rewarding effects of JUUL e-cigarette vapour in adult and adolescent rats, as well as the neural correlates of these difference.

Pedro Marinho joins the NODD lab this fall and will begin his PhD in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at Western University. Welcome to the lab, Pedro!