Sr. Scientist/Principal Scientist, Immunology

Job Summary:

The successful candidate is responsible for the design and execution of target validation activities under the supervision of Executive Director, R&D Operations to support therapy development efforts of Novasenta Inc., a UPMC Enterprises funded biotech startup.

Novasenta’s mission is to transform medicine by enabling innovative drug discovery at the interface of disease, immunity, and metabolism. Novasenta uses a next generation drug discovery approach combining unique experimental and computational tools to explore the human tumor microenvironment and discover novel therapeutically relevant targets and drugs.

Responsibilities:

• Report to Executive Director of Research & Development Operations or other assigned leader to ensure meeting the goals of Novasenta and pursuing the most promising targets within the tumor microenvironment for the development of therapeutics.
• Contribute to target validation pipeline design, development and refinement at Novasenta
• Design and conduct routine and non-routine lab procedures and assays for molecular, cellular and metabolic characterization of relevant samples from mouse models of cancer and human clinical cancer tissue under the supervision of Executive Director of R&D Operations and Principal Scientist.
• Obtain biological data to establish novel mechanistic insights related to the biological impact of novel targets.
• Be a critical thinker and familiar with recent developments in the field Develop in-depth scientific knowledge in research focus and contribute to assay/pipeline design and development.
• Support the development and validation of new technologies for molecular, cellular and metabolic characterization of samples.
• Maintain complete, accurate, and timely records of experiments and data analysis.
• Contribute to the profiling and validation of novel druggable immunotherapy targets.
• Provide scientific expertise and train/direct others in research techniques. Position may have direct reports so the ability to develop direct reports and communicate expectations effectively is important.
• Actively participates in the scientific dialogue of the group and proactively collaborates with colleagues
• Performs other duties as assigned

Qualifications:

• PhD in biology, immunology or closely related field with 3+ years of experience or Masters ‘ degree in biology, immunology or closely related field and 5 yrs. experience or bachelor’s degree in biology, immunology or related field and 7 yrs. experience in industry or academic research lab setting.
• Industry lab experience preferred for Sr. Scientist; 2 yrs. Industry experience required for Principal Scientist
• Hands on bench role
• Must be willing to work on-site full time in Pittsburgh, PA.
• Must have Immunology experience
• Oncology experience is not required but preferred.
• CRISPR experience desired.
• Experience with multi-plex flow cytometry required
• Experience with different immune populations – Tcell, NK cell, Bcell, myeloid
• Knowledge about synthetic immunology – TCR, CAR-T, cell therapy highly desired
• Experience in designing and executing appropriate immuno-oncology-related animal studies for target discovery applications.
• Strong ability to propose new experimental designs, plan and conduct laboratory experiments, and evaluate and interpret data.
• Demonstrated record of success with strong publication record.
• Experience performing and analyzing a broad array of molecular, cellular biological and immunology methods.
• The ideal candidate is product and goal oriented, focused on a career in biotech
• They are highly efficient and organized and have a demonstrated ability to adhere to and follow defined timelines, milestones, and objectives.
• Experience in working under GLP standards and ensuring safety compliance under BSL-2
• Experience with laboratory information system (LIMS) is a plus
• Good verbal and written communication skills and the ability to interpret, summarize, and present results in a clear, concise, accurate manner across all levels of the organization.

• Environmental Conditions
  • Sedentary

• Physical Demands
  • Sedentary