Pain and Neuroinflammation Imaging Lab

Keenan Byrne

Clinical Research Coordinator

I graduated from Sant Louis University in 2021 with a double B.A. in Psychology and Sociology and a minor in Spanish. While at SLU, I took a strong interest in exploring both macro and micro sociological influences on mental health, particularly among young communities. In a senior practicum capstone focusing on developmental perspectives on human flourishing, I explored the impact of physical activity based positive youth development programs on youth mental health and development and how such programs could adapt under COVID-19 pandemic circumstances. At SLU I was also a member of the Psi Chi International Honor Society for Psychology.

After my time at SLU, I continued my passion for youth mental health working as part of an in-home behavioral therapy clinical partnership. In that role, I worked directly with families with children struggling from mental health and behavioral disorders. Looking to pair my clinical experience with further experience on the research side, I began working at MGH in August 2022 as a research coordinator in the lab of Dr. Eva Ratai. In Dr. Ratai’s lab, I work as a coordinator and lead psychometrist for a multi-site study examining the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the brain through advanced MR imaging and spectroscopy. 

I am thrilled to continue investigating the impact of COVID-19 on the brain under both Dr. Loggia and Dr. Ratai as a coordinator for a PET/MR study looking at neuroinflammation in individuals with post-acute sequalae of COVID-19 (PASC) and HIV. Outside of the lab and in my free time, I am an avid runner, hiker, and skier.