Kathryn Manning

Scientist, Neurosciences and Mental Health Program and Translational Medicine Program

Dr. Kathryn Manning studied at Western University, where she demonstrated intervention-related neuroplastic reorganization in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy. Manning uncovered acute and persistent brain changes in children and adolescents engaged in contact sports or longitudinally following concussion. She then completed her postdoctoral training at The Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute at the University of Calgary, where she examined brain development patterns in young children and how they predict and relate to cognition, behaviour, and mental health outcomes. In her current work as a Scientist at SickKids, Manning is applying data-driven analysis techniques to understand factors that shape neurodevelopmental trajectories and how timely interventions can capitalize on the neuroplastic potential of the young brain.

Research

Dr. Kathryn Manning has vast experience scanning infants and young children using high-field MRI to understand brain development patterns. She demonstrated for the first time how social support can not only improve mental health for pregnant individuals — it can mediate the impact of stress in utero upon the infant functional connectome. In her recent work, she has taken advantage of open big data to understand how the complex balance of risk and resiliency factors can impact individual developmental trajectories, uncovering specific multidimensional brain patterns that predict mental health outcomes. Manning is currently exploring how an intervention for postnatal depression can protect offspring, and she is excited to explore other early interventions for children, youth, and their families. By acquiring and leveraging longitudinal data across early development, Manning seeks to improve our understanding of the neuroplastic potential of the young brain, ultimately to inform how, when, and for whom specific targeted interventions may be the most impactful.

Education and experience

• 2018-2025: Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Radiology, Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
• 2014-2018: PhD, Department of Medical Biophysics, Western University, London, ON, Canada
• 2014-2017: M.CI.Sc., Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Education Programs (CAMPEP), Canada
• 2011-2014: M.Sc., Department of Medical Biophysics, Schulich Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada
• 2007-2011: B.Sc., Applied Mathematics and Physics, Department of Physics and Oceanography, Memorial University, St. John’s, NL, Canada

Achievements

• 2025: Unit Co-Lead of the Application and Translation Committee for the International Society of Tractography
• 2023: CIHR Postdoctoral Fellowship titled “Treated and untreated prenatal depression and the relationship with developing infant behaviour, brain structure, and functional connectivity throughout the first year of life.”
• 2022: Young Investigator Award, The Fetal, Infant and Toddler Neuroimaging Group
• 2021: Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) and Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute
  (ACHRI) Postdoctoral Scholarship, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB
• 2020: T. Chen Fong Postdoctoral Fellowship in Medical Imaging Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB
• 2018: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Postdoctoral Fellowship  
• 2017: Donders Institute-Brain and Mind Institute Trainee Exchange Programme Competition Award Recipient. Fellowship with Dr. Christian F. Beckmann at Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
• 2016: The Nellie Farthing Fellowship in Medical Sciences for Excellence in Research

1. Manning KY, Llera A, Lebel C. “Reliable multimodal brain signatures predict mental health outcomes in children.” Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. 2025 Nov; 10(11):1197-1209, doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsc.2025.03.003.
2. Manning KY, Jaffer A, Lebel C. “Windows of opportunity: how age and sex shape the influence of prenatal depression on the child brain.” Biological Psychiatry. 2025 Feb; 97(3): 227-247. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2024.07.022.
3. Manning KY, Long X, Watts D, Tomfohr-Madsen L, Giesbrecht G, Lebel C. “Prenatal maternal distress during the COVID-19 pandemic and associations with infant brain connectivity.” Biological Psychiatry. 2022 Nov; 92 (9): 701-708. doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2022.05.011
4. Manning KY, Reynolds JR, Long X, Llera A, Dewey D, Lebel C. “Multimodal brain features at 3 years of age and their relationship with pre-reading measures 1 year later.” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 2022 Aug; 16: 1-14. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.965602.
5. Manning KY, Brooks JS, Dickey JP, Harriss AH, Fischer L, Jevremovic T, Blackney K, Barreira C, Brown A, Bartha R, Doherty T, Fraser D, Holmes J, Dekaban GA, Menon RS.” Longitudinal changes of brain microstructure and function in non-concussed female varsity rugby players” Neurology. 2020 July; 95 (4). doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000009821

See more of Dr. Manning's publications

Funding

• 2025-2026: BrainHack Global Toronto: Building Bridges in Brain Data, Lead Principal Investigator, OBI Centre for Analytics, 5K
• 2023-2025: Can an intervention for prenatal depression protect infant neurodevelopment?, Principle Investigator, Owerko Centre Early Career Investigator Grant, 25K
• 2021-2022: Perinatal psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects on infant brain development during the first year of life, Co-Investigator, Canadian Institutes of Health Research Operation Grant, 150K