Scientist / Senior Scientist, Influenza Functional Genomics & Vaccine Design
See more jobs from Flagship Pioneeringover 2 years old
What if…you could join an organization that creates, resources, and builds life sciences companies that invent breakthrough technologies in order to transform health care and sustainability?
Flagship Labs 77 (FL77) is an early-stage biotechnology company with an ambitious and exciting mission: to lay the foundation for Global Pathogen Shield™ protective interventions that that can neutralize a wide range of the most dangerous and rapidly evolving infectious pathogen threats. The company is developing a revolutionary approach to this challenge and recruiting a team of top-tier scientists to build what it believes will be a powerful, first-in-category R&D platform.
FL77 is a product of Flagship Pioneering’s venture creation engine, which has also given rise to companies such as Moderna Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MRNA), Rubius Therapeutics (NASDAQ: RUBY), and Editas Medicines (NASDAQ: EDIT). Since Flagship’s founding in 2000, the firm has originated and fostered the development of more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in over $34 billion in aggregate value, 500+ issued patents, and more than 50 clinical trials for novel therapeutic agents.
Position Summary:
This Scientist / Senior Scientist position will develop novel, high-throughput viral screening platforms at the interface of virology, immunology, functional genomics, and vaccine design. The successful candidate will play a critical role in formulating and executing on a science & technology strategy that will allow the company to deliver against its near- and longer-term goals. This individual will join a dynamic, rapidly growing, and collaborative team to play a key role in designing and implementing these high-throughput assays. Additionally, this position will be responsible for leveraging these platforms in vaccine design projects. Detailed experience in RNA virus reverse genetics, influenza cell culture, and associated assays are critical for this position. Experience with viral NGS, high-diversity DNA libraries, high-throughput screening, antibody characterization, and/or immunogen design is preferred. This candidate should excel in in a fast-paced and collaborative start-up environment.
Key Responsibilities:
- Work closely with other experimental and computational scientists to design innovative high-throughput viral assays and perform critical data-generating experiments
- Build an infrastructure of laboratory protocols, reagents, and assays to enable early pipeline development
- Utilize newly developed technology platforms in vaccine design campaigns
- Act as subject matter expert on particular concepts in influenza vaccinology
- Help formulate and articulate the company’s science & technology strategy, and monitor progress toward key strategic goals on an ongoing basis
- Collaborate with computational scientists to guide data analysis, interpret results, and build an iterative experimental cycle
- Communicate insights and conclusions to colleagues in the scientific and leadership teams
Basic Qualifications:
- Ph.D. plus 0-4+ years of experience in virology, immunology, genomics, bioengineering, or a related field
- Experience with RNA virus reverse genetics, influenza serology, influenza virus cell culture, and associated techniques
- Demonstrated expertise in traditional and newly emerging influenza vaccine design concepts
- Experience with antibody binding or neutralization assays
- Excellent organization and communication skills
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience in high-throughput screening, functional genomics, protein engineering, and/or vaccine design is a plus
- Experience in analyzing influenza virus genetic and antigenic diversity
- Familiarity with generating diverse DNA libraries, high-throughput cloning, and/or NGS of viral samples
- Experience with antibody characterization, serological assays, and/or cell-based functional assays
- Post-PhD experience developing and using innovative high-throughput assays
- Experience with automation and liquid handlers