Laule, Cornelia

Portrait photo of Cornelia Laule

Dr.

Laule, Cornelia

BSc, MSc, PhD

Academic Ranks(s):

Associate Professor, Dept of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, UBC, Vice Chair, Research in Radiology and also Associate Director, Education for ICORD

Affiliations(s):

ICORD and DMCBH

Short Bio
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Dr. Cornelia (Corree) Laule is a physicist and has been involved with nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) research for 25 years. She heads an interdisciplinary research program in multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury spanning technical innovations to clinical translation. She is passionate about science communication and leads initiatives to increase diversity in STEM, emphasizing women and Indigenous peoples.

Academic
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Academic Background

  • BSc (Major: Physics, Minor: German), University of British Columbia (1994-1999)
  • MSc (Physics), University of British Columbia (1999-2001)
  • PhD (Physics), University of British Columbia (2001-2005)
  • Research Associate, Department of Radiology, University of British Columbia (2005-2010)
  • Post doctoral fellowship, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia (2010-2012)

Awards and Recognition

Publications

Bibliography

Research
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Research Interest

  • magnetic resonance imaging
  • magnetic resonance spectroscopy
  • brain
  • spinal cord
  • multiple sclerosis
  • spinal cord injury
  • myelin
  • axons
  • inflammation
  • myelin water imaging
  • T1 and T2 relaxation
  • diffusion MRI
  • MRI-histology correlation

Current Projects In My Lab Include

The lab currently has openings for graduate students. Interested candidates should send their CV and statement of research interests directly to Dr. Laule.

Teaching
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Teaching Interest

My work with the first year physics labs has taught me the importance of exposing this group of students to the practical application of physics, with particular emphasis on how physics training can lead to interdisciplinary medical research. My experience in teaching first year psychiatry residents about neuroimaging gave me an opportunity to engage this group about the importance of imaging in clinical and research settings. Coordinating and lecturing in the Pathology graduate student seminar course has allowed me to disseminate knowledge about a topic I feel passionate about – science communication.

Finally, the educational initiative I am most proud of is the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD) Summer Research Program for Indigenous Youth (https://icord.org/issp/), which I co-established with Ms. Cheryl Niamath, ICORD Communications and Administrative Manager. This program started as a pilot in the summer of 2018 to introduce local Indigenous high school students to the exciting world of neuroscience research. From one student in 2018, the program tripled in size to three students in 2019. We are now partnering with the School of Biomedical Engineering and for the summer of 2021 we placed 9 students. This past summer we expanded the program to UBC Okanagan where we placed 7 students, in addition to 5 students at UBC Vancouver.