M Natasha Rajah
CIHR Sex and Gender Science Chair Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Psychology Toronto, Ontario natasha.rajah@torontomu.ca
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Bio/Research
Professor M. Natasha Rajah is a Full Professor in the Department of Psychology, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Sex, Gender and Diversity in Brain Health, Memory and Aging. She is also an Adjunct Faculty at the Department of Psychiatry, McGill University,...
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Bio/Research
Professor M. Natasha Rajah is a Full Professor in the Department of Psychology, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Sex, Gender and Diversity in Brain Health, Memory and Aging. She is also an Adjunct Faculty at the Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Adjunct Scientist at the Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest, and CIHR Sex and Gender Research Chair in Neuroscience, Mental Health and Addiction.
Prior to joining the Psychology Department in Fall 2023, Natasha was a Full Professor with tenure in the Department of Psychiatry, and Associate Member of the Department of Psychology at McGill University (2005-2023). Dr. Rajah also held senior administrative roles at McGill University, including as Director of the Douglas Brain Imaging Centre (2011-2021) and Assistant Dean (Academic Affairs), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) (2022-2023). She received her PhD in Experimental Psychology at University of Toronto (St. George Campus) and did her postdoctoral training at The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California (Berkeley).
In her Brain Health Equity in Aging and Memory (BHEAM) Lab at TMU, she conducts cognitive and clinical neuroscience research on memory, aging, and dementia prevention. She uses structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in combination with behavioral, neuropsychological, blood-based endocrine and protein analysis, and genetic methods to advance knowledge about: 1) The cognitive neuroscience of episodic memory 2) How biological sex and sociocultural gender affect cognitive brain aging and AD risk – with a focus on midlife and the effect of menopause 3) How social determinants of health and lifestyle factors affect cognitive brain aging in diverse samples. The goal of her research program is to identify the biological, environmental, and social factors that support the maintenance of normative memory across the adult lifespan, and, to determine what factors negatively affect cognitive and brain aging and place individuals at greater risk of developing AD. To learn more about her research please visit her lab website (link above).
Natasha is a member of the CIHR Institute of Aging Advisory Board; Board of Directors, Canadian Association of Neuroscience (CAN), and is Co-Lead of Team 9 (Developing Novel Biomarkers) and the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Committees for the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging (CCNA). She is Editor-in-Chief of Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition and Associate Editor, Psychological Science.
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Prior to joining the Psychology Department in Fall 2023, Natasha was a Full Professor with tenure in the Department of Psychiatry, and Associate Member of the Department of Psychology at McGill University (2005-2023). Dr. Rajah also held senior administrative roles at McGill University, including as Director of the Douglas Brain Imaging Centre (2011-2021) and Assistant Dean (Academic Affairs), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) (2022-2023). She received her PhD in Experimental Psychology at University of Toronto (St. George Campus) and did her postdoctoral training at The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California (Berkeley).
In her Brain Health Equity in Aging and Memory (BHEAM) Lab at TMU, she conducts cognitive and clinical neuroscience research on memory, aging, and dementia prevention. She uses structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in combination with behavioral, neuropsychological, blood-based endocrine and protein analysis, and genetic methods to advance knowledge about: 1) The cognitive neuroscience of episodic memory 2) How biological sex and sociocultural gender affect cognitive brain aging and AD risk – with a focus on midlife and the effect of menopause 3) How social determinants of health and lifestyle factors affect cognitive brain aging in diverse samples. The goal of her research program is to identify the biological, environmental, and social factors that support the maintenance of normative memory across the adult lifespan, and, to determine what factors negatively affect cognitive and brain aging and place individuals at greater risk of developing AD. To learn more about her research please visit her lab website (link above).
Natasha is a member of the CIHR Institute of Aging Advisory Board; Board of Directors, Canadian Association of Neuroscience (CAN), and is Co-Lead of Team 9 (Developing Novel Biomarkers) and the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Committees for the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging (CCNA). She is Editor-in-Chief of Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition and Associate Editor, Psychological Science.
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