Scientist, Gene-Based Assays

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Job description

About the role

Sana Biotechnology is growing, and we are hiring new team members who believe in the potential of engineered cells as medicines, who want to challenge status quo, and who lead with the desire to work on novel ideas. As a Scientist, Gene-Based Assays, you will report to Associate Director, Gene-Based Assays to help build the Analytical Development department at Sana Biotechnology. You will join an innovative, multi-disciplinary team developing and implementing characterization strategies, analytical methods, and data analysis to support the advancement of Sana's pipeline. You will work cross-functionally with scientists from Research, Process Development, and Quality Control to determine the appropriate methodologies to assess drug products, intermediates, and critical reagents.

What you'll do

• Develop and execute methods for gene and cell therapy products
• Oversee method optimization, method qualification or validation activities for out-sourced testing
• Author technical reports for the development of analytical methods and write detailed standard operating procedures
• Transfer methods to quality control and support their implementation and execution
• Work with the automation team to increase the sample throughput of existing assays
• Help in the operation and maintenance of the lab and equipment
• Present results at group meetings, and communicate effectively with a broad audience with a range of technical, analytical, and biological expertise
• Develop product characterization strategies and methodologies to advance Sana's pipeline
• Support regulatory filings and product comparability strategies
• Purchase and maintain analytical instrumentation and coordinate support with vendors

What we're looking for

• Ph.D. in molecular biology, microbiology, virology, or other life science and 0-2 years academic or industry experience. BA and/or MS plus 7+ years or equivalent combination of education and work experience
• Experience designing, optimizing, and troubleshooting qPCR and/or ddPCR assays
• Experience developing and optimizing viral quantification assays
• Expertise with a range of molecular biology techniques
• Experience with different software packages used for data analysis (e.g. JMP, Spotfire, Python, Excel)
• Ability to design thoughtful experiments, troubleshoot, critically evaluate data, and summarize results in a meaningful way
• Detailed record keeping and documentation of relevant experimental details
• You should be a team player, highly organized, and an excellent problem solver

What will separate you from the crowd

• Experience overseeing analytical method development at CDMOs/CROs
• Experience automating molecular biology methods
• Experience with NGS library preparation methods

What you should know

• Occasional travel between Sana locations
• Working safely in person on a predictable and regular basis is an essential job function for this position and the Company requires that all individuals working in-person, subject to certain exceptions, be fully vaccinated against COVID-19

How we work together

• Lead from every seat - we seek to understand, act with honesty, and engage in the crucial conversations
• Thrive as a team - we hire amazing people, are intensely curious, and cultivate inclusion and personal connectivity
• Make it happen - we value vigorous debate, alignment around our decisions, and resilient execution

Get to know us

At Sana, we believe that a diverse workforce strengthens us as a company and helps us to achieve our mission to meaningfully change the outcome of many human diseases. This belief is a pillar of our business and is critical to our success. Our goal is that Sana is the place for talented people to bring their authentic selves to work, to have a great career and to deeply, positively impact patients.

Core to our values, we believe there is nothing more important than the health and wellness of you and your family. For benefit eligible employees, we cover 100% of the cost for employee health coverage and offer generous time-off, parental leave, short- and long-term disability, financial wellness programs, a 401(k) Plan, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, commuter subsidy and a variety of wellness offerings to support each person individually.

We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental or sensory disability (including the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability), genetic information, actual or perceived HIV or Hepatitis C infection, medical condition (cancer or a record or history of cancer and genetic characteristics), marital status, sexual orientation, sexual preference, pregnancy (including childbirth and related medical conditions), disability, veteran status, political ideology, taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

To perform this job successfully, you must be able to perform each job responsibility satisfactorily. The job description listed above is representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions described above.