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Katharine Dunlop

PhD

Scientist, Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science

Email: katharine.dunlop@unityhealth.to
Tel: 416-864-6060 x4078
Twitter: @KatharineDunlop

Research Programs

Biography

Dr. Katharine Dunlop is a scientist at the Centre for Depression and Suicide Studies, and an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. Dr. Dunlop received her PhD in Medical Science in 2018 at the University of Toronto, Institute of Medical Science, as a CIHR Vanier Scholar. She also completed a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroscience as a CIHR Banting Fellow in the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medicine in 2021.

Dr. Dunlop uses cognitive science, human structural and functional neuroimaging, and non-invasive brain stimulation (e.g., transcranial magnetic stimulation) to investigate the biological underpinnings of inter-individual variability in behaviour and symptomatology, treatment response, and predictors of symptom improvement. Her current research program aims: (1) to develop circuit-based models of symptom-specific antidepressant response, with a focus on glutamatergic modulation, psychosocial stress and reward processing; (2) to investigate the structural, functional and behavioural factors that influence non-invasive brain stimulation-evoked brain activity and plasticity; and (3) to translate this knowledge into clinical practice to aid in diagnosis and treatment selection.

Recent Publications

  1. Ho, NCW, Dunlop, K. Establishing the Clinical Potential of Brain Aging in Depression: Implications for Suicidality and Antidepressant Response. Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging. 2023;8 (4):347-348. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2023.01.005. PubMed PMID:37028903 .
  2. Ballester, PL, Suh, JS, Ho, NCW, Liang, L, Hassel, S, Strother, SC et al.. Gray matter volume drives the brain age gap in schizophrenia: a SHAP study. Schizophrenia (Heidelb). 2023;9 (1):3. doi: 10.1038/s41537-022-00330-z. PubMed PMID:36624107 PubMed Central PMC9829754.
  3. Talishinsky, A, Downar, J, Vértes, PE, Seidlitz, J, Dunlop, K, Lynch, CJ et al.. Regional gene expression signatures are associated with sex-specific functional connectivity changes in depression. Nat Commun. 2022;13 (1):5692. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-32617-1. PubMed PMID:36171190 PubMed Central PMC9519925.
  4. Sheen, JZ, Miron, JP, Mansouri, F, Dunlop, K, Russell, T, Zhou, R et al.. Cardiovascular biomarkers of response to accelerated low frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in major depression. J Affect Disord. 2022;318 :167-174. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.08.105. PubMed PMID:36055538 .
  5. Kuburi, S, Di Passa, AM, Tassone, VK, Mahmood, R, Lalovic, A, Ladha, KS et al.. Neuroimaging Correlates of Treatment Response with Psychedelics in Major Depressive Disorder: A Systematic Review. Chronic Stress (Thousand Oaks). 2022;6 :24705470221115342. doi: 10.1177/24705470221115342. PubMed PMID:35936944 PubMed Central PMC9350516.
  6. Oberlin, LE, Victoria, LW, Ilieva, I, Dunlop, K, Hoptman, MJ, Avari, J et al.. Comparison of Functional and Structural Neural Network Features in Older Adults With Depression With vs Without Apathy and Association With Response to Escitalopram: Secondary Analysis of a Nonrandomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5 (7):e2224142. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.24142. PubMed PMID:35895056 PubMed Central PMC9331093.
  7. Demchenko, I, Tassone, VK, Kennedy, SH, Dunlop, K, Bhat, V. Intrinsic Connectivity Networks of Glutamate-Mediated Antidepressant Response: A Neuroimaging Review. Front Psychiatry. 2022;13 :864902. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.864902. PubMed PMID:35722550 PubMed Central PMC9199367.
  8. Jaywant, A, Dunlop, K, Victoria, LW, Oberlin, L, Lynch, CJ, Respino, M et al.. Estimated Regional White Matter Hyperintensity Burden, Resting State Functional Connectivity, and Cognitive Functions in Older Adults. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2022;30 (3):269-280. doi: 10.1016/j.jagp.2021.07.015. PubMed PMID:34412936 PubMed Central PMC8799753.
  9. Woodside, DB, Dunlop, K, Sathi, C, Lam, E, McDonald, B, Downar, J et al.. A pilot trial of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation of the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex in anorexia nervosa: resting fMRI correlates of response. J Eat Disord. 2021;9 (1):52. doi: 10.1186/s40337-021-00411-x. PubMed PMID:33865456 PubMed Central PMC8052685.
  10. Dunlop, K, Victoria, LW, Downar, J, Gunning, FM, Liston, C. Accelerated brain aging predicts impulsivity and symptom severity in depression. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2021;46 (5):911-919. doi: 10.1038/s41386-021-00967-x. PubMed PMID:33495545 PubMed Central PMC8115107.
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