To mark the 10th anniversary of the United Nation’s ‘International Day of Women and Girls in Science’ on February 11th, 2025 – AMSBIO has interviewed Dr Zoe Hewitt, an expert in cell and gene therapy manufacturing, and co-founder of Regen CTC*.
In this insightful Q&A, Dr Hewitt reflects on her unexpected journey into science, the barriers women still face in science and practical steps to drive greater diversity in life sciences. Topics include what inspired her career in science, the importance of early role models, her work in developing cells to be used in a groundbreaking therapy for blindness, and what companies and individuals can do to support women in scientific fields.
Asked to recall a rewarding moment from her career, Dr Hewitt shared “One of my proudest moments was in 2010, working on a project led by Pete Coffey at UCL that helped develop a stem cell therapy for blindness. My team manufactured the starting material for the Master Cell Bank that supported the “London Project to Cure Blindness,” which aims to restore vision in patients with macular degeneration… I know that people are walking around London today, who can see because of RPE cells differentiated from cells generated in our clean room. And that is incredible.”
When asked what actions are needed going forwards to support women and overall diversity in life science research, Dr Hewitt identified the need to start challenging stereotypes at a young age; actively participate in mentorship and networking as well as encouraging employers to adopt fairer hiring policies and taking accountability for workplace structure that support diverse employees.
To read the interview in full please visit https://www.amsbio.com/blogs/women_in_stem/
