Senior Scientist, Cell Therapy

AstraZeneca • Gaithersburg, MD

1d

About The Position

We are seeking a highly-motivated and independent Senior Scientist with demonstrated experience in Cellular Therapy, Immunology, and/ or Immuno-Oncology to join our rapidly growing Cell Therapy Team. In this role you will make use of your in vivo and/ or in vitro experience in T cell immunology to contribute to the advancement of innovative Cell Therapy products by designing and conducting laboratory experiments, developing methodology, and generating and interpreting scientific data in a highly collaborative environment. Accountabilities Conducts hands-on in vivo research including design, implementation, and interpretation of studies Conducts routine drug discovery research experiments by applying the techniques of molecular and cellular biology, analyzes and interprets data, and communicates results to team members Supports a team and works collaboratively with project managers to ensure the efficient relay of information and forward translation of data Assesses and reports data, with little or no guidance, in a clear and concise manner, while developing an understanding of its implications within the overall context of drug discovery Provides technical instruction to the team and allocates administrative work where possible Communicates and shares information between distinct projects within the bioscience function and across other functions as required Ensures own work, and work of peers, is compliant with Safety, Health and Environment standards and all other relevant internal AstraZeneca standards and external regulations

Requirements

• PhD in a relevant discipline with 0-3 years of demonstrated experience in Cellular Therapy, Immunology, and/ or Immuno-Oncology
• Extensive in vivo skillset including animal handling, mouse tumour models, standard routes of dosing and engraftment, and tissue processing
• Experience with humanized mouse models and in vivo model development
• In vitro skillset with a well-developed understanding of molecular and cellular biology, immunological assays, cell transfection/ transduction, and advanced cell culture techniques
• Ability to design, execute, and troubleshoot experiments, and to review, analyze, and interpret results

Nice To Haves

• Experience with genome editing technologies (CRISPR/ Cas9, base-editing, transposons, etc.)
• Multicolour flow cytometry expertise
• Basic experience developing cellular therapies including CAR-T/ CAR-NK, TCR-T, and/ or TIL therapies
• Experience with in vivo CAR-T therapies
• Experience working with human and/ or cyno T cells
• Experience with metabolic assays, such as nutrient uptake and Seahorse metabolic flux assays
• Computational biology experience and proficiency in Python and/or R, prior experience in UNIX-based systems, high-performance computing (e.g. SLURM), and large-scale data management
• Expertise in -omics technologies and data science (such as generating and analyzing single cell RNAseq and ATACseq datasets)
• Familiarity and experience with AI predictive modelling tools and statistical methods applied to training of machine learning models
• Background in drug discovery and development in the pharmaceutical industry

Responsibilities

• Conducts hands-on in vivo research including design, implementation, and interpretation of studies
• Conducts routine drug discovery research experiments by applying the techniques of molecular and cellular biology, analyzes and interprets data, and communicates results to team members
• Supports a team and works collaboratively with project managers to ensure the efficient relay of information and forward translation of data
• Assesses and reports data, with little or no guidance, in a clear and concise manner, while developing an understanding of its implications within the overall context of drug discovery
• Provides technical instruction to the team and allocates administrative work where possible
• Communicates and shares information between distinct projects within the bioscience function and across other functions as required
• Ensures own work, and work of peers, is compliant with Safety, Health and Environment standards and all other relevant internal AstraZeneca standards and external regulations

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree