Key Points
- This summer, the Foundation sponsored 26 global interns at 16 institutions across 5 countries.
- Read about the three projects that were ranked the highest by an internal review board.
The Foundation’s Global Internship Program provides high school and undergraduate university students with an opportunity to participate in focused ultrasound research. These summer internships support students who are working on focused ultrasound–related research with an academic or clinical research mentor at international institutions. Global internships are offered as part of the Foundation’s Dan and Lou Jordan Focused Ultrasound Internship Program.
In 2025, the Foundation sponsored a record 26 global interns at 16 institutions across 5 countries – England, Korea, Italy, Canada, and the United States.
“Looking across this year’s projects, it’s clear that our global interns engaged with some of the most exciting frontiers in the field—from therapeutic innovation and device development to imaging, modeling, and clinical translation,” said Lauren Hadley, MD, MBA, director of the Foundation’s FUS Scholars Program. “Their work reflects not only the breadth of focused ultrasound applications worldwide, but also the passion and curiosity that will shape the next generation of researchers. We are grateful to the mentors and host sites whose dedication makes this program possible.”
Three 2025 global intern projects were deemed exceptional by an internal scientific review board. Click the title to read a summary of the project.
Alessia Apa
Mentor: Isabelle Aubert, PhD
Institution: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre*
Project Title: Evaluating the Mechanisms Underlying Focused Ultrasound-Mediated Oligodendrogensis
Nischal Bhattarai
Mentor: Muna Aryal, PhD
Academic Institution: North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University*
Project Title: Designing an In-Vitro System to Study Ultrasound’s Impact on Brain Fluid Diffusion
Raquel Casas
Mentor: George Ibrahim, MD, PhD
Academic Institution: Hospital for Sick Children*
Project Title: Simulation-Based Evaluation of the Feasibility and Safety of Noninvasive Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy Using Focused Ultrasound
Cooper Donovan
Mentor: Charles Caskey, PhD
Academic Institution: Vanderbilt University
Project Title: Performance of a Through-Transmit Aberration Correction Method for Transcranial Focused Ultrasound
Armand Darius Guerret-Shimi
Mentor: Sophie Morse, PhD
Academic Institution: Imperial College London
Project Title: Using Focused Ultrasound to Modulate Synaptic Architecture
Hunter Harris
Mentor: Steven Allen, PhD
Academic Institution: Brigham Young University
Project Title: Error Characterization and Parameter Optimization in a 3T Magnetic Resonance Hydrophone System
Athreya Iyer
Mentor: Adam Maxwell, PhD
Academic Institution: Virginia Tech
Project Title: Investigation of Collateral Injury in Veterinary Osteosarcoma Histotripsy Treatments
Elijah Leblang
Mentor: Elisa Konofagou, PhD
Academic Institution: Columbia University*
Project Title: The Development of a Multimodal Registration and Visualization Platform for the Monitoring and Assessment of FUS-Mediated Blood-Brain Barrier Opening in Preclinical and Clinical Settings
Qiyixing (Ethan) Liu
Mentor: Sophie Morse, PhD
Academic Institution: Imperial College London
Project Title: Targeting Neuro-Metabolic Pathways: Focused Ultrasound Modulation of the Hippocampus and Hypothalamus for Diabetes Treatment
Mason Liu
Mentor: Cheng-Chia (Fred) Wu, MD, PhD
Academic Institution: Virginia Tech*
Project Title: Integration of Focused Ultrasound and Targeted Therapies to Improve Treatment of Pediatric Brain Tumors
Maya McCabe
Mentor: Philip Jason White, PhD
Academic Institution: Brigham and Women’s Hospital*
Project Title: Development and Optimization of a Ring-Shaped Transducer for Blood-Brain Disruption in Rodent Models
Thomas Wayne McInerney
Mentor: Natasha Sheybani, PhD
Academic Institution: University of Virginia*
Project Title: Delivery of CAR T-Cell Therapy using Focused Ultrasound
Matteo Palmero
Mentor: Francesco Prada, MD
Academic Institution: Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta*
Project Title: Sonodynamic Therapy Targeting the Endoplasmic Reticulum: Analysis of Samples from the SONICALA Trial
Julian Papasodaro
Mentor: Adam Waspe, PhD
Academic Institution: Hospital for Sick Children*
Project Title: Evaluation of Deep Learning-Synthesized Pediatric CT Scans for Use in Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Treatment Planning
Lauren Park
Mentor: Dong-Guk Paeng, PhD
Academic Institution: Jeju National University*
Project Title: Ultrasonic Stimulations on Lymphatic Vessels to Treat Lymphedema
Abigail Pinch
Mentor: Mario Fabiilli, PhD
Academic Institution: University of Michigan
Project Title: Effect of Delayed Ultrasound Exposure on Ultrasound-Mediated Drug Release from Composite Hydrogels
Junaid Rehman
Mentor: Samuel Pichardo, PhD
Academic Institution: University of Calgary
Project Title: Class D Power Amplifier for Multi-Axial Transducers
Ben Rhyne
Mentor: Nicholas Todd, PhD
Academic Institution: Brigham and Women’s Hospital*
Project Title: Optimizing FUS Burst Length for Efficient AAV Delivery Across the Blood-Brain Barrier in a Huntington’s Disease Mouse Model
Juhwan Roh
Mentor: Dong-Guk Paeng, PhD
Academic Institution: Jeju National University
Project Title: Numerical Modeling of 3D Surface of Carbon Nanotube Transducer Considering Acoustic Characteristics of the Skull Layers
Saanvi Sidhu
Mentor: Laura Curiel, PhD
Academic Institution: University of Calgary Hospital*
Project Title: Evaluation and Characterization of a HIFU Prototype for Neuromodulation
Rohan Singh
Mentor: Wladyslaw Gedroyc, PhD
Academic Institution: Imperial College Healthcare*
Project Title: Differential Effects of Sonication Above and Below the ACPC Line with Regards to Essential Tremor Stimulation
Neil Sriram
Mentor: Elisa Konofagou, PhD
Academic Institution: Columbia University*
Project Title: Approaches to Comparing Passive Acoustic Mapping Algorithms for FUS-Mediated Blood-Brain Barrier Opening
Johnny Tang
Mentor: Antonios Pouliopoulos, PhD
Academic Institution: King’s College London
Project Title: Material Selection for 3D-Printed Acoustic Holographic Lenses for Targeted Focused Ultrasound Through the Skull
Nathan Thyberg
Mentor: Steven Allen, PhD
Academic Institution: Brigham Young University
Project Title: Noninvasive, In-Vivo Pressure Measurement of Obliquely Propagating Ultrasound during Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation
Yagu Wang
Mentor: James Choi, PhD
Academic Institution: Imperial College London
Project Title: Predicting Microbubble Cavitation State with Machine Learning
Sophia Zanca
Mentor: Kenneth Bader, PhD
Academic Institution: University of Chicago Medicine*
Project Title: Validation of a PRP/PPP Protocol for the Investigation of Platelet Activation in Response to Histotripsy
*Indicates a visiting internship not at the student’s academic institution.
Interested in a Global Internship?
The Foundation will issue a call for applications for the 2026 Global Interns in early next year.
Mason Liu
Mentor: Cheng-Chia (Fred) Wu, MD, PhD
Academic Institution: Virginia Tech*
Integration of Focused Ultrasound and Targeted Therapies to Improve Treatment of Pediatric Brain Tumors
This study aimed to evaluate how focused ultrasound—induced blood-brain barrier opening in combination with a variety of targeted therapies modulated the tumor immune microenvironment in mouse models of medulloblastoma and diffuse midline glioma, two of the most aggressive pediatric brain tumors. Prior to analyzing the mouse tumor samples from several different treatment groups, the student assessed the synergistic effects of two therapies on medulloblastoma tumor cells in vitro using scRNA-seq. This preliminary work set the stage for him to then help analyze the in vivo tumor samples from graduate student experiments. Most impressive is that this intern is a high school student, and his written report displayed excellent scientific and laboratory acumen.
Maya McCabe
Mentor: Philip Jason White, PhD
Academic Institution: Brigham and Women’s Hospital*
Development and Optimization of a Ring-Shaped Transducer for Blood-Brain Disruption in Rodent Models
The main goal of this project was to design a preclinical benchtop ultrasound transducer that simultaneously induces blood-brain barrier (BBB) opening/disruption and allows the use of multi-photon microscopy to monitor drug distribution in the brain in real time. This system would allow live drug tracking and quantification during BBB opening treatments. The development of a final transducer prototype is ongoing, but initial technical transducer fabrication work described by the student is impressive.
Julian Papasodaro
Mentor: Adam Waspe, PhD
Academic Institution: Hospital for Sick Children*
Evaluation of Deep Learning-Synthesized Pediatric Computed Tomography (CT) Scans for Use in Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Treatment Planning
The objective was to use a deep learning model trained on paired pediatric MRI-CT data to generate synthetic CT scans directly from T1w MRI, in order to replace real CT scans in the planning of pediatric transcranial focused ultrasound procedures. This will reduce radiation exposure from CT scans in the pediatric population and could help enhance enrollment in prospective transcranial focused ultrasound clinical trials by eliminating the need for pre-treatment CT scans.