Melanie Morrison, PhD

Assistant Professor
Assistant Professor
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Biography

Melanie Morrison, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in residence in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at UCSF, and a core member of the UCSF-UC Berkeley Joint PhD Program in Bioengineering. She received her BSc in Integrated Sciences at Carleton University in Ontario, Canada, before completing her PhD at the University of Toronto. In 2016 she joined UCSF's Radiology Department as a postdoc, working under Dr. Janine Lupo primarily on brain tumor projects until summer 2022.

Since 2019, Dr. Morrison's independent research has been focused on the clinical translation and integration of advanced MRI techniques to improve neurosurgical interventions and neuromodulation therapies for neurologic and neuropsychiatric conditions. Her research group leverages multimodal 3T and 7T MRI data to: (1) develop and test new strategies for precise brain targeting in neuromodulation, (2) derive predictive imaging markers of treatment efficacy for patients' motor, cognitive and behavioral symptoms, and (3) evaluate brain function in real-time during brain neuromodulation to further our understanding of underlying therapeutic mechanisms. Both image processing and statistical modeling techniques are implemented at the core of this translational research, with a strong emphasis on method transparency, reproducibility, and accessibility. Currently, these exciting projects are supported by three UCSF seed grants, an NIMH R21 grant, and an NINDS R01 grant.

As a first-generation academic, Dr. Morrison is very passionate about mentorship, outreach, and providing equal opportunities in academia for underrepresented minority trainees and individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Education

2022 - Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion Training, University of California
PhD, 2016 - Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto
BSc, 2013 - Integrated Science, Physics, Carleton University

Honors and Awards

Weill Institute Women in Neurosciences Research Support for Female Learners Impacted by COVID-19, University of California San Francisco, 2021
Best Poster Presentation (Radiology Retreat), University of California San Francisco, 2021
Magna cum Laude (abstract), International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine Conference, 2020
Bruce Hasegawa, PhD Award for Early-Scientist Excellence in Research, University of California San Francisco, 2020
PBBR (Program for Breakthrough Biomedical Research) Postdoc Independent Research Grant, University of California San Francisco, 2020
Radiology Seed Grant, University of California San Francisco, 2020
UC Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellowship Award, University of California San Francisco, 2020
UCSF Regeneron Prize Finalist, University of California San Francisco, 2020
Office of Education and Training Travel Grant, University of California San Francisco, 2019
Best Oral Presentation, British Neuro-Oncology Society, 2018
Introduction to Academic Radiology for Scientist Training and Travel Award, Radiological Society of North America, 2017
Best Oral Presentation (Radiology Symposium), University of California San Francisco, 2017
Postdoc Slam Finalist, University of California San Francisco, 2017
Walker-Marshall Award for Academic Excellence, University of Toronto, 2016
Summa cum Laude (abstract), International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine Conference, 2015
James Lepock Memorial Award, University of Toronto, 2015
Ontario Graduate Scholarship, University of Toronto, 2015
School of Graduate Studies Conference Grant, University of Toronto, 2015
Department of Medical Biophysics Excellence Award, University of Toronto, 2014
Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology, University of Toronto, 2013-2015
Ontario International Education Opportunity Scholarship, Carleton University, 2011
Entrance Scholarship, Carleton University, 2009

Publications

Basich-Pease G, Slepneva N, Frank AC, Norbu T, Morrison MA, Sugrue LP, Larson PS, Starr PA, Lee AM. Tractography-based DBS lead repositioning improves outcome in refractory OCD and depression. Front Hum Neurosci. 2023; 17:1339340.
Yao J, Morrison MA, Jakary A, Avadiappan S, Rowley P, Glueck J, Driscoll T, Geschwind MD, Nelson AB, Possin KL, Xu D, Hess CP, Lupo JM. Altered Iron and Microstructure in Huntington's Disease Subcortical Nuclei: Insight From 7T MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging. 2024 Jan 11.
Fan JM, De B, Frank AC, Basich-Pease G, Norbu T, Morrison MA, Larson P, Starr PA, Krystal AD, Lee AM. Intracranial beta activity is a biomarker of circadian and stimulation-induced arousal in obsessive compulsive disorder. Brain Stimul. 2024 Jan-Feb; 17(1):29-31.
Sandoval-Pistorius SS, Hacker ML, Waters AC, Wang J, Provenza NR, de Hemptinne C, Johnson KA, Morrison MA, Cernera S. Advances in Deep Brain Stimulation: From Mechanisms to Applications. J Neurosci. 2023 11 08; 43(45):7575-7586.
Bledsoe IO, Morrison MA. . Functional imaging of deep brain stimulation in dystonia: a review. Dystonia. 2023; 2.
Starkweather CK, Morrison MA, Yaroshinsky M, Louie K, Balakid J, Presbrey K, Starr PA, Wang DD. Human upper extremity motor cortex activity shows distinct oscillatory signatures for stereotyped arm and leg movements. Front Hum Neurosci. 2023; 17:1212963.
Yao J, Morrison MA, Lupo JM. Editorial for "Relationship Between Microstructural Alterations and Cognitive Decline After Whole-Brain Radiation Therapy for Brain Metastases: An Exploratory Whole-Brain MR Analysis Based on Neurite Orientation Dispersion and Density Imaging". J Magn Reson Imaging. 2024 01; 59(1):253-254.
Cajigas I, Morrison MA, San Luciano M, Starr P. Cerebellar Deep Brain Stimulation in Cerebral Palsy: Promising Early Results and a Look Forward to a Larger Clinical Trial. World Neurosurg. 2023 Jun; 174:223-224.
Cajigas I, Morrison MA, Luciano MS, Starr PA. Cerebellar deep brain stimulation for the treatment of movement disorders in cerebral palsy. J Neurosurg. 2023 09 01; 139(3):605-614.
Genc O, Morrison MA, Villanueva-Meyer JE, Burns B, Hess CP, Banerjee S, Lupo JM. DeepSWI: Using Deep Learning to Enhance Susceptibility Contrast on T2*-Weighted MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging. 2023 10; 58(4):1200-1210.
Yao J, Morrison MA, Jakary A, Avadiappan S, Chen Y, Luitjens J, Glueck J, Driscoll T, Geschwind MD, Nelson AB, Villanueva-Meyer JE, Hess CP, Lupo JM. Comparison of quantitative susceptibility mapping methods for iron-sensitive susceptibility imaging at 7T: An evaluation in healthy subjects and patients with Huntington's disease. Neuroimage. 2023 01; 265:119788.
Louie KH, Gilron R, Yaroshinsky MS, Morrison MA, Choi J, de Hemptinne C, Little S, Starr PA, Wang DD. Cortico-Subthalamic Field Potentials Support Classification of the Natural Gait Cycle in Parkinson's Disease and Reveal Individualized Spectral Signatures. eNeuro. 2022 Nov-Dec; 9(6).
Morrison MA, Walter S, Mueller S, Felton E, Jakary A, Stoller S, Molinaro AM, Braunstein SE, Hess CP, Lupo JM. Functional network alterations in young brain tumor patients with radiotherapy-induced memory impairments and vascular injury. Front Neurol. 2022; 13:921984.
Kline C, Stoller S, Byer L, Samuel D, Lupo JM, Morrison MA, Rauschecker AM, Nedelec P, Faig W, Dubal DB, Fullerton HJ, Mueller S. An Integrated Analysis of Clinical, Genomic, and Imaging Features Reveals Predictors of Neurocognitive Outcomes in a Longitudinal Cohort of Pediatric Cancer Survivors, Enriched with CNS Tumors (Rad ART Pro). Front Oncol. 2022; 12:874317.
Avadiappan S, Morrison MA, Jakary A, Felton E, Stoller S, Hess CP, Molinaro AM, Braunstein SE, Mueller S, Lupo JM. Relationship between 7T MR-angiography features of vascular injury and cognitive decline in young brain tumor patients treated with radiation therapy. J Neurooncol. 2021 May; 153(1):143-152.
Morrison MA, Lupo JM. 7-T Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Management of Brain Tumors. Magn Reson Imaging Clin N Am. 2021 Feb; 29(1):83-102.
Morrison MA, Lee AT, Martin AJ, Dietiker C, Brown EG, Wang DD. DBS targeting for essential tremor using intersectional dentato-rubro-thalamic tractography and direct proton density visualization of the VIM: technical note on 2 cases. J Neurosurg. 2021 Jan 15; 135(3):806-814.
Cooper N, Morrison MA, Vladescu C, Hart ACJ, Paul D, Malik A, Young T, Luqmani A, Atta M, Sharp DJ, Bussel JB, Waldman AD. Identification of occult cerebral microbleeds in adults with immune thrombocytopenia. Blood. 2020 12 17; 136(25):2875-2880.
Morrison MA, Jakary A, Avadiappan S, Tallakson J, Glueck J, Nelson A, Possin K, Dietiker C, Geschwind M, Hess C, Lupo JM.. 7 Tesla MRI investigation of cortical thickness in patients with Huntington’s disease and age-matched healthy controls. Movement Disorders. 2020; suppl 1(35):287.
Morrison MA, Bledsoe IO, Wang SS, Lee AT, Volz M, San Luciano M, Katz M, Dietiker C, Galifianakis N, Martin AJ, Starr PA, Larson PS, Ostrem JL, Wang DD.. Temporal properties of resting-state functional MRI are associated with ON/OFF levodopa MDS-UPDRS III scores in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Movement Disorders. 2020; suppl 1(35):602.
Morrison MA, Mueller S, Felton E, Jakary A, Stoller S, Avadiappan S, Yuan J, Molinaro AM, Braunstein S, Banerjee A, Hess CP, Lupo JM. Rate of radiation-induced microbleed formation on 7T MRI relates to cognitive impairment in young patients treated with radiation therapy for a brain tumor. Radiother Oncol. 2021 01; 154:145-153.
Han M, Yang B, Fernandez B, Lafontaine M, Alcaide-Leon P, Jakary A, Burns BL, Morrison MA, Villanueva-Meyer JE, Chang SM, Banerjee S, Lupo JM. Simultaneous multi-slice spin- and gradient-echo dynamic susceptibility-contrast perfusion-weighted MRI of gliomas. NMR Biomed. 2021 01; 34(1):e4399.
Avadiappan S, Payabvash S, Morrison MA, Jakary A, Hess CP, Lupo JM. A Fully Automated Method for Segmenting Arteries and Quantifying Vessel Radii on Magnetic Resonance Angiography Images of Varying Projection Thickness. Front Neurosci. 2020; 14:537.
Morrison MA, Waldman AD. Imaging Markers of Lower-Grade Diffuse Glioma. In: Pope W. (eds) Glioma Imaging. 2020; 139-159.
Graham SJ, Morrison MA, Tam F, Schweizer TA, Das S, Garavaglia M. System and method for intraoperative characterization of brain function using input from a touch panel device. 2019.
Islam S, Morrison MA, Waldman AD. NIMG-55. TO ASSESS THE UTILITY OF ADVANCED QUANTITATIVE DIFFUSION MRI DERIVED FROM MULTI B VALUE ACQUISITIONS IN THE ASSESSMENT OF TREATMENT RESPONSE, USING A SPATIALLY-INDEPENDENT APPROACH. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_6(21):vi173.
Morrison M, Avadiappan S, Yuan J, Stoller S, Jakary A, Mueller S, Molinaro A, Banerjee A, Hess C, Braunstein S, Lupo J. NIMG-56. A MULTIMODAL 7 TELSA MRI INVESTIGATION OF LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF RADIOTHERAPY ON THE ADOLESCENT BRAIN & COGNITION. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_6(21):vi173–vi174.
Avadiappan S, Morrison M, Jakary A, Felton E, Mueller S, Lupo J. RTHP-21. CHARACTERIZATION OF RADIATION THERAPY EFFECTS ON CEREBRAL VASCULATURE IN PEDIATRIC BRAIN TUMOR SURVIVORS. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_6(20):vi229.
Morrison M, Jakary A, Bian W, Wen Q, Hess C, Clarke J, Butowski N, Chang S, Nelson S, Lupo J. RTHP-02. CHARACTERIZATION AND EVOLUTION OF RADIOTHERAPY-INDUCED VASCULAR INJURY AND CORRESPONDING CHANGES IN WHITE MATTER STRUCTURE: AN INVESTIGATIVE STUDY IN 125 PATIENTS WITH GLIOMAS. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_6(19):vi219.
Chen Y, Villanueva-Meyer JE, Morrison MA, Lupo JM. Toward Automatic Detection of Radiation-Induced Cerebral Microbleeds Using a 3D Deep Residual Network. J Digit Imaging. 2019 10; 32(5):766-772.
Islam S, Morrison M, Orton M, Grech-Sollars M, Waldman A. USING DWI-MRI PARAMETERS FROM MULTI- B VALUES ACQUISITION AND A HISTOGRAM APPROACH FOR ASSESSMENT OF EARLY THERAPEUTIC RESPONSE IN GLIOBLASTOMA. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_4(21):3-3.
Das S, Morrison M, Tam F, Graham S. Spatial reorganisation of the somatosensory cortex in a patient with a low-grade glioma. BMJ Case Rep. 2019 May 05; 12(5).
Yuan J, Morrison M, Jakary A, Mueller S, Tymofiyeva O, Xu D, Lupo J. MEDU-15. STRUCTURAL BRAIN NETWORK PROPERTIES AND COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT IN ADOLESCENTS AFTER RADIATION THERAPY. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_2(21):ii106.
Morrison MA, Jakary A, Felton E, Stoller S, Yuan J, Mueller S, Lupo J. MEDU-18. FUNCTIONAL BRAIN NETWORK PROPERTIES AND COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT IN ADOLESCENTS FOLLOWING RADIATION THERAPY. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_2(21):ii107.
Avadiappan S, Morrison M, Jakary A, Felton E, Stoller S, Hess C, Mueller S, Braunstein S, Lupo J. MEDU-43. GLOBAL AND REGIONAL EFFECTS OF RADIATION THERAPY ON CEREBRAL MICROVASCULATURE IN PEDIATRIC BRAIN TUMOR SURVIVORS. Neuro-Oncology. 2019; suppl_2(21):ii112.
Morrison MA, Hess CP, Clarke JL, Butowski N, Chang SM, Molinaro AM, Lupo JM. Risk factors of radiotherapy-induced cerebral microbleeds and serial analysis of their size compared with white matter changes: A 7T MRI study in 113 adult patients with brain tumors. J Magn Reson Imaging. 2019 09; 50(3):868-877.
Islam S, Morrison M, Grech-Sollars M, Orton M, Waldman A. ACTR-42. THE USE OF ADVANCED DIFFUSION MRI PARAMETERS IN THE ASSESSMENT OF TREATMENT RESPONSE IN GLIOBLASTOMA USING MULTI-B VALUE ACQUISITION AND A HISTOGRAM-BASED APPROACH. Neuro-Oncology. 2018; suppl_6(20):vi20–vi21.
Morrison M, Islam S, Grech-Sollars M, Waldman A. NIMG-47. A HISTOGRAM-BASED, BACK-PROJECTION METHOD FOR TREATMENT RESPONSE ASSESSMENT IN GLIOBLASTOMA USING MULTI B-VALUE ADVANCED DIFFUSION MRI. Neuro-Oncology. 2018; suppl_6(20):vi186–vi187.
Morrison M, Jakary A, Felton E, Hess C, Clarke J, Butowski N, Chang S, Mueller S, Lupo J. CHARACTERIZATION OF RADIOTHERAPY-INDUCED CEREBRAL MICROBLEEDS WITH ULTRA-HIGH FIELD MRI: EXPERIENCE IN YOUNG AND ADULT BRAIN TUMOUR POPULATION. Neuro-Oncology. 2018; suppl_5(20):v349.
Morrison MA, Payabvash S, Chen Y, Avadiappan S, Shah M, Zou X, Hess CP, Lupo JM. A user-guided tool for semi-automated cerebral microbleed detection and volume segmentation: Evaluating vascular injury and data labelling for machine learning. Neuroimage Clin. 2018; 20:498-505.
Morrison M, Jakary A, Felton A, Mueller S, Lupo L. MEDU-25. THE EFFECTS OF CRANIAL RADIOTHERAPY-INDUCED VASCULAR INJURY ON BRAIN TISSUE STRUCTURE AND COGNITIVE FUNCTION IN CHILDREN WITH MEDULLOBLASTOMA. Neuro-Oncology. 2017; 9(suppl_4):iv43.
Milburn S, Garavaglia M, Hare G, Rigamonti A, Kelly C, Morrison M, Graham S, Das S. NCO-09 * THE EFFICACY OF THERAPEUTIC DISCOURSE ANALYSIS DURING BRAIN TUMOUR RESECTION IN AWAKE CRANIOTOMIES. Neuro-Oncology. 2016; suppl 5(17):v147-v148.
Morrison MA. Pre-operative Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Application to Tumour Resection by Awake Craniotomy. 2016.
Morrison MA, Tam F, Garavaglia MM, Hare GM, Cusimano MD, Schweizer TA, Das S, Graham SJ. Sources of Variation Influencing Concordance between Functional MRI and Direct Cortical Stimulation in Brain Tumor Surgery. Front Neurosci. 2016; 10:461.
Morrison MA, Tam F, Garavaglia MM, Hare GMT, Cusimano MD, Schweizer TA, Das S, Graham SJ. PS2 – 196. The Spatial Agreement Between Pre-Operative Functional MRI and Intra-Operative Direct Cortical Stimulation. The Canadian journal of neurological sciences. 2016; S4(43):S17.
Morrison MA, Churchill NW, Cusimano MD, Schweizer TA, Das S, Graham SJ. Reliability of Task-Based fMRI for Preoperative Planning: A Test-Retest Study in Brain Tumor Patients and Healthy Controls. PLoS One. 2016; 11(2):e0149547.
Morrison MA, Tam F, Garavaglia MM, Golestanirad L, Hare GM, Cusimano MD, Schweizer TA, Das S, Graham SJ. A novel tablet computer platform for advanced language mapping during awake craniotomy procedures. J Neurosurg. 2016 Apr; 124(4):938-44.
Morrison M, Golestanirad L, Schweizer T, Graham S, Das S . Neuro-Oncology. NI-59 * TABLET TECHNOLOGY FOR IMPROVED PREOPERATIVE SPEECH MAPPING USING FUNCTIONAL MRI IN PATIENTS WITH LOW-GRADE GLIOMA. 2014; suppl 5 (16):v151-v151.
Davoudi B, Morrison M, Bizheva K, Yang VX, Dinniwell R, Levin W, Vitkin IA. Optical coherence tomography platform for microvascular imaging and quantification: initial experience in late oral radiation toxicity patients. J Biomed Opt. 2013 Jul; 18(7):76008.