CHRISTINE J. McKENZIE

Biography

I was born in the tiny town of Tongala, Victoria, Australia. My early education was at Dawes Rd. Primary School, Kyabram, and Girton Grammar School in Bendigo. I did an undergraduate degree in Science Education (1980-1983) and an Honors degree in Chemistry (1984) at The University of Melbourne. An apparent knack for research won me a Commonwealth Postgraduate Research Award to continue Ph.D. studies under the supervision of Professor Richard Robson where I synthesized palladium complexes of sulfur-containing multinucleating ligands and investigated their catalytic properties. In 1990, I came to Odense University in Denmark and a post-doctoral position with Professor Hans Toftlund where my interest in the biologically important transition elements was sparked. I was appointed to an Assistant Professorship in 1994, an Associate Professorship in 1998 and a Full Professorship in 2005 at what was by this point renamed to The University of Southern Denmark. My life in Denmark has been very busy. Besides teaching and making many new compounds, I have made two children.

Awards

• Professor Kernot Scholarship (shared) and CSR chemistry prize (shared), The University of Melbourne, 1984.
• Researcher of the year for Odense County (Årets forsker, Odense Kommune), 1997.
• Fyens Stiftstidende Researcher of the Year, 2008.
• Carlsberg Kemi Pris, May 2009.
• Bjerrum-Brønsted-Lang prize (awarded by The Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters), 2017.

Visiting Fellowships

• University of Sydney, International Visiting Research Fellowship, February 2009.
• University of Gothenburg, Sweden, Visiting Professorship, September 2010 - January 2011.

CURRENT GROUP

• 
  Vickie McKee
  (Adjunct Prof)
• 
  Charlotte Damsgaard
  (Lab Technician)
• 
  Mads Sondrup Møller
  (Postdoc)
• 
  Mathias Lander Skavenborg
  (Postdoc)
• 
  Soumitra Dinda
  (Postdoc)
• 
  Ellis Smith
  (Postdoc)
• 
  Bushra Safdar
  (PhD Student)

ALUMNI

Former Postdocs:

• 
  Catherine Chen
  (2019-2022)
• 
  James McPherson
  (2019-2022)
• 
  Christina Wegeberg
  (2019)
• 
  Andrea Liberato Gonzalez
  (2018-2019)
• 
  Claire Deville
  (2013-2015)
• 
  Jonas Sundberg
  (2013)
• >
  Anders Lennartson
  (2010-2011)
• 
  Rune Kirk Egdal
  (2008-2010)
• 
  Andrew Bond
  (2003)
• John McGinley (1995)

Former PhD Students:

• 
  Mads Sondrup Møller
  (2020-2023)
• 
  Mathias Lander Skavenborg
  (Visiting from UNSW 2019-2023)
• 
  David Nielsen
  (2018-2021)
• 
  Christina Wegeberg
  (2016-2019)
• 
  David Poulsen de Sousa
  (2014-2017)
  Current position:
  Novozymes
• 
  Simon Svane
  (co-supervised, 2012-2015)
  Current position:
  Postdoc SDU-KBM Biotechnology
• 
  Jonas Sundberg
  (2009-2012)
  Current position:
  DTU
• 
  Mads Sørensen Vad
  (2009-2012)
  Current position:
  Novozymes
• 
  Rune Kirk Egdal
  (2005-2008)
  Current position:
  Novozymes
• 
  Anne Nielsen
  (2006-2010)
  Current workplace:
  Hospital
• 
  Frank Bartnik Larsen/Johansson
  (2003-2007)
  Current workplace:
  Haldor Topsøe A/S
• Lars Preuss Nielsen
  (2000-2003)
  Current workplace:
  Palgaard A/S
  
  Morten Ghiladi
  (1995-1999)
  Current workplace:
  Haldor Topsøe A/S

Former International Visiting Students:

• 
  Florian Cerpentier
  (International student - NL)
• 
  Meike Landsiedel
  (International student - DE)

Former Speciale/Masters Students:

• Louise Ellegaard Hald
• Line Sofie Hansen
• Mads Sondrup Møller
• Joakim Schack

• Christina Wegeberg
• Vibe Jakobsen
• David Poulsen de Sousa
• Charlotte Sommer
• Simon Svane
• Lene Christensen
• Anne Nielsen
• Rune Kirk Egdal
• Fabienne Bramsen
• Sune Veltzé
• Sanne Kjærgaard Knudsen
• Martin N. Mortensen
• Birgit Jensen
• Aase Christensen
• Jens-Carl Laursen
• Lars Preuss Nielsen
• Edel Johansson
• Julien Levin
• Pia Dalsgaard
• Astrid Boisen
• Rene Tangaard
• Maria Munch
• Henrik Molina Svendsen