Nicholas Ellens has extensive experience developing focused ultrasound technology and conducting preclinical research. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Toronto, where he developed ultrasound simulation models and conducted animal studies using MR-guided focused ultrasound. Currently, he is a Research Associate at Johns Hopkins University, where he has established programs for blood-brain barrier disruption and gene delivery using focused ultrasound.

1. CURRICULUM VITAE
Nicholas Ellens
516 S. Luzerne Avenue
Baltimore, MD, 21224
1.667.214.8470
nicholasellens@gmail.com
CITIZENSHIP
Canadian and American
EXPERIENCE
Johns Hopkins University: Research Associate; Nov. 2014—present
 Set up small animal focused ultrasound blood-brain-barrier disruption program and
coordinated with various collaborators for the delivery of genes and biomarkers.
 Worked to integrate interstitial therapeutic ultrasound transducers with the Philips
Sonalleve MR-guided high intensity focused ultrasound software platform.
 Developed software link to provide real-time thermometry capability for 9.4T Bruker
MRI to monitor focused ultrasound induced heating.
FUS Instruments: Applications Specialist; Nov. 2012—Dec. 2014
 Developed MR-compatible stereotaxic rodent platform and ultrasound coupling tank
for use in small-bore MR scanners (72 mm diameter).
 Developed testing procedures for radiofrequency noise and quantified precision and
accuracy of focused ultrasound targeting under MR guidance.
 Developed analysis tools to quantify the performance and assess the efficacy of an
integrated ultrasound receiver, contributing to the company’s first sale of this
hardware and software.
 Led installation and training teams of two or three personnel to sites globally.
University of Toronto: Ph.D. Candidate; Sept. 2010—Dec. 2014.
 Developed a multi-layer ultrasound simulation model (implemented in parallel in
CUDA) to simulate treatments with novel, flat phased arrays on physiologically-
accurate patient models developed from segmented MR images.
 Tested therapeutic ultrasound phased array modules for power output and focusing
 Developed QA system to test the focusing of a large-aperture, flat phased array.
 Performed ultrasound-guided, in vivo ablation studies in rabbits and pigs, and
performed MR-guided, trans-cranial blood-brain barrier disruption in mice and rats.
 Performed interventional MRI experiments on porcine samples with focused
ultrasound with real-time MR thermometry monitoring.
Sunnybrook Research Institute: Research Physicist/Engineer; March 2010—Sept.
2010.
 Performed a simulation study to design a more efficient ultrasound phased array for
uterine fibroid ablation.
 Worked with a research team to develop a prototype design for the construction of a
device that incorporated the findings of the simulation study.

2. McMaster University: Undergraduate Research Assistant; Sept. 2007—June 2008.
 Studied the induced stability of foams, films, and bubbles in the presence of colloids.
Harvard University: Undergraduate Research Assistant; May 2007—Aug. 2007.
 Worked for the ‘ATRAP’ collaboration that continues to seek to produce low-energy
anti-hydrogen at CERN, Switzerland.
 Designed, modelled, and built electronic and mechanical scientific instruments.
McMaster University: Undergraduate Research Assistant; May 2006—Aug. 2006.
 Researched a theoretical method by which brown dwarf stars form.
 Increased proficiency in C, Fortran, and IDL programming languages.
Department of National Defence: Non-Commissioned Officer; June 2002—Nov. 2012.
 Reserve infantry soldier appointed to numerous roles including the direct supervision
and management of groups of up to 15.
 Managed new recruits and developed curriculum.
 Awarded highest grade in communications course, won several fitness and
endurance competitions.
 Selected for and underwent leadership training.
EDUCATION
Ph.D., Medical Biophysics. University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada: Sept. 2010—Dec.
2014
 Supervisor: Dr. Kullervo Hynynen.
 Thesis title: “Flat, Electronically Steered λ/2-Spaced Phased Arrays for Focused
Ultrasound Surgery”
 Recipient of National Sciences and Engineering Research Council Canada Graduate
Scholarship ($105 000) and Ontario Graduate Scholarship ($15 000).
 GPA: 4.0.
M.A., Faculteit der Wijsbegeerte (Philosophy). Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The
Netherlands: Sept. 2008—Aug. 2009
 Thesis supervisor: Dr. Jonathan Chaplin, University of Cambridge, U.K.
 Thesis title: “Associational Liberty and the Liberal State”.
 GPA: A-/A (Netherlands: 7.9).
B.Sc. (Honours), Physics. McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada: Sept.
2004—April 2008
 GPA: 3.7. Graduated summa cum laude.
 Recipient of Nortel Networks and McMaster University entrance scholarships.

3. PUBLICATIONS
Ellens, N., et al. (2015). A novel, flat, electronically-steered phased array transducer for
tissue ablation: preliminary results. Physics in Medicine and Biology 60: 2195.
Ellens, N. et al. (2015). The targeting accuracy of a preclinical MRI-guided focused
ultrasound system. Medical Physics 42: 430.
Weber-Adrian, D., Thevenot, E., O’Reilly, M., Oakden, W., Akens, M., Ellens, N., et al.
(2015). Gene delivery to the spinal cord using MRI-guided focused ultrasound. Gene
Therapy Advanced Online Publication.
Ellens, Nicholas P. K., and Kullervo. H. Hynynen. 2014. “High-Intensity Focussed
Ultrasound for Medical Therapy.” In Power Ultrasonics: A Handbook of Applications
of High Power Ultrasound Transducers, edited by Juan Antonio Gallego-Juarez.
Cambridge, UK: Woodhead Publishing Ltd. Accepted, to be published in November
2014.
Ellens, N. & Hynynen, K (2014). Simulation study of the effects near- and far-field heating
during focused ultrasound uterine fibroid ablation using an electronically focused
phased array: a theoretical analysis of patient safety. Medical Physics, 41(7), 072902.
Scarcelli, T., Jordão, J. F., O’Reilly, M. A., Ellens, N., Hynynen, K., & Aubert, I. (2014).
Stimulation of Hippocampal Neurogenesis by Transcranial Focused Ultrasound and
Microbubbles in Adult Mice. Brain Stimulation, (February), 3.
Ellens, N., Pulkkinen, A., Song, J., & Hynynen, K. (2011). The utility of sparse 2D fully
electronically steerable focused ultrasound phased arrays for thermal surgery : a
simulation study. Physics in medicine and biology, 56: 4913.
Shen, S., Wadsley, J., Hayfield, T., & Ellens, N. (2010). A numerical study of brown dwarf
formation via encounters of protostellar discs. Monthly Notices of the Royal
Astronomical Society, 401(2), 727.
REFERENCES
Available upon request.