Sponsored by the CSC Biological and Medicinal Chemistry Division of the CSC and Simon Fraser University
The Melanie O’Neill New Investigator Award is presented to a scientist residing in Canada who has made a distinguished contribution to biological chemistry or biophysical methods.
View the Terms of Reference and list of Past Winners
The 2026 winner of the Melanie O’Neill New Investigator Award in Biological Chemistry is:
Maureen McKeague, MCIC
McGill University
Prof. Maureen McKeague is advancing nucleic acid chemistry at the interface of biology and biophysics. Her laboratory develops chemically diverse oligonucleotides to detect, characterize, and treat disease, integrating chemical innovation with molecular biology to reveal new functions of DNA and RNA. Key discoveries include the first synthetic, chemically triggered catalytic RNA for live-animal drug sensing, oligonucleotide therapeutics that activate gene expression in leukemia, and validated, chemically modified oligonucleotide biosensors for infectious disease. Together, these advances define new chemical and biophysical approaches for studying and controlling nucleic acids in living systems.
McKeague earned her PhD at Carleton University and completed postdoctoral training at Stanford University and ETH Zurich. She is now an Associate Professor jointly appointed in Chemistry and Pharmacology & Therapeutics at McGill University, where she holds a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Functional Oligonucleotides. She serves as Vice-President of the International Society on Aptamers, Associate Editor for Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids and sits on the Editorial Advisory Board of Chemical Research in Toxicology. Her work has been recognized with the ACS Kavli Emerging Researcher Award and the Cole Foundation Transition Award, underscoring method-driven advances in biological chemistry and biophysical approaches used in vivo and in clinical settings.