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Heather McKenzie

Heather McKenzie

Senior Editor

Heather McKenzie is a professional journalist with more than five years experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. Since joining BioSpace, she has written more than 200 features and breaking news articles with a particular focus in neuroscience and gene therapy. She has also traveled internationally to cover global biotech hubs such as Israel. In previous roles, she has covered current affairs, sports, education and politics. She previously spent eight years as a senior content producer for executive-level business conferences in the pharma/biotech, legal, energy and business strategy sectors. In her free time, Heather enjoys creative writing, spending time with family and playing with her energetic Russian Blue cat Roofus. She hails from Toronto and has also lived in Chicago and Chesapeake, Virginia. You can reach her at heather.mckenzie@biospace.com.

Photo courtesy of Capsida Biotherapeutics Inc.
Business
CRISPR and Capsida Partner in Gene Edited Therapies for ALS, Friedreich’s Ataxia
Per the agreement, CRISPR will lead the research and development of the Friedreich’s ataxia program, while Capsida will shepherd the R&D for the ALS effort.
June 14, 2021
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Drug Development
Are Vindictive Variants Threatening Our COVID-19 Recovery?
According to the CDC, the Delta variant now accounts for more than 6% of infections in the U.S. and may be responsible for 18% of cases in some Western states.
June 10, 2021
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Policy
Aduhelm Approval Draws Mixed Reaction, Sparks New Controversy Over Pricing
Not everyone is so confident that Aduhelm will transform the Alzheimer’s drug development landscape.
June 8, 2021
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Nathan Stirk/Getty Images
Drug Development
AstraZeneca Redefining Cancer Care in Breast Cancer, Leukemia at ASCO
After three years, 85.9% of patients treated post-surgically with Lynparza were free of invasive breast cancer and second cancers compared to 77.1% of the placebo group.
June 7, 2021
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Genetown
Cellarity: Transforming Drug Development at the Confluence of Biology and Machine Learning
In the field of drug discovery, one must always begin with the target, right? Not if you ask Cellarity, a quickly emerging biotech company revolutionizing the drug development space.
June 4, 2021
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Drug Development
Novartis Breaks Through with Radioligand Therapy for Prostate Cancer
Today, the Swiss pharma titan announced the results of its Phase III VISION study, where 177Lu-PSMA-617 plus best standard of care (SOC) met both of its primary endpoints.
June 3, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Business
Experts: Previous COVID-19 Infection Not a ‘Get Out Of Jail Free’ Card
Importantly, the researchers recovered virus that they were able to culture, indicating a high risk for transmissibility.
June 3, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Drug Development
Calliditas is Getting to the Heart of Berger’s Disease
Calliditas is developing Nefecon, a down regulator of IgA1 and proprietary, novel oral formulation of budesonide – a potent and established immunosuppressant – for the treatment of IgAN.
June 2, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Drug Development
HALT: AB Science Announces Worldwide Voluntary Hold on Lead Compound Masitinib
Inclusions and treatment initiation will be paused in all ongoing clinical studies until an investigation into the potential safety issue is complete.
June 1, 2021
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2 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Business
Female-Founded and Funded Capsida Taps Swati Tole as Chief Medical Officer
Newly entrenched in a leadership role within one of the most complex therapeutic spaces, Tole discussed the complexities of being both a woman and a woman of color in the biotech industry.
June 1, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Drug Development
FDA Clears AskBio’s AAV Gene Therapy for Muscular Dystrophy to Enter Phase I/II
LION-101 is a novel recombinant AAV being developed as a one-time intravenous infusion for the treatment of adult and adolescent patients with Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy Type 2I/R9.
May 25, 2021
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2 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Business
LianBio is Driving Innovation in China with Next-Gen CEO Yizhe Wang
Wang, who has played a key role in the development of more than 25 innovative medicines at Eli Lilly and GlaxoSmithKline, made him the ideal fit for the company’s next chapter.
May 24, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Drug Development
Precision Medicine Study Points to Promising New Approach in Alzheimer’s
The team has taken a fundamentally new approach to Alzheimer’s, and it centers around the hypothesis that there are multiple drivers causing the disease.
May 20, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Celmatix Founder and CEO Piraye Yurttas Beim, Ph.D
Pharm Country
Celmatix is Redefining the Ovary to Power Women’s Health
Celmatix’s drug program works by mimicking anti-Mullerian hormone, which acts as the molecular break that keeps women from depleting their ovarian reserves too quickly.
May 18, 2021
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Vedere Bio II CEO Cyrus Mozayeni/company
Business
Vedere Bio is Bypassing What’s Broken to Create Light in Vision Loss
The robust $77 million Series A was led by Octagon Capital and the leadership and research team behind the original Vedere Bio.
May 17, 2021
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4 min read
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Heather McKenzie
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