Scientist 2 - Research and Development

Title: - Scientist 2 - Research and Development -

Location: SPRING HOUSE / PA / 19477

Duration: 12months (with possible extensions)

Job Description

This position in Gene Therapy and Gene Delivery Platforms group offers an exciting opportunity to help develop novel Gene Therapies for unmet medical needs. We are investigating the use of Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) vectors to deliver therapeutic proteins to patients for disease prevention as well as treatment of retinal, neuro, and infectious diseases.

We are seeking a highly motivated scientist to join a group that is engineering new AAV therapeutic vectors for lead indications and for evaluating advanced Gene Therapy technologies. These technologies include development of a scalable AAV manufacturing platform in human cells and improving AAV potency and tropism for relevant tissues and cell types. The job requires a molecular biologist with experience cloning and purifying plasmids.

Key characteristics include but are not limited to: ability to handle tight timelines and delivery of quality data; highly-organized and capable of handling multiple projects simultaneously; capable of carrying out established procedures and protocols with minimal direction.

Primary Responsibilities

Assist efforts to construct therapeutic plasmids and viral vectors using molecular cloning methods designed to maintain viral repeat regions

Purify plasmids by Qiagen anion-exchange chromatography columns

Perform restriction mapping and submit DNA sequencing samples to QC final plasmids

Organize and help maintain the plasmid inventory

Maintain an electronic lab notebook (ELN) to document results

Contribute to a collaborative, creative, and rigorous culture of scientific discovery

Experience and Skills Required::

B.S. with at least 2 years or A.S. with 3-5 years of relevant post-graduate laboratory experience in the pharmaceutical industry or academic environment

Experience constructing plasmids using traditional restriction/ligation or isothermal assembly (In-Fusion/HiFi/Gibson) methods

Experience purifying plasmid DNA by Qiagen or similar anion exchange chromatography columns

Ability to follow established protocols with minimal guidance

Preferred

Experience performing plasmid QC analyses, including diagnostic restriction digests and Sanger sequencing

A general understanding of virology and cell biology vectors

Cross-functional team experience in an industry environment

Experience with documentation and reporting of results using electronic lab notebooks is preferred