Senior Scientist II (Protein & Antibody Production)

COMPANY DESCRIPTION:

Every Exelixis employee is united in an ambitious cause: to launch innovative medicines that give patients, and their families hope for the future. In this pursuit, we know our employees are our most valuable asset. After operating in the challenging biotech sector for 25 years, we have a proven track record of resiliency in the face of adversity. The success of our lead product has provided a solid commercial foundation allowing us to reinvigorate our research efforts and grow our team in areas such as Drug Discovery, Clinical Development and Commercial.

As we expand our global partnerships and further reinvest in R&D to help us discover the next breakthrough for difficult-to-treat cancers, we're seeking to add talented, dedicated employees to power our mission.

Cancer is our cause. Make it yours, too.

SUMMARY/JOB PURPOSE:

As a member of the Biotherapeutics group, the incumbent will play a key role in supporting the group's discovery and preclinical development efforts by possessing skills and experience in recombinant antibody production and purification/characterization. The incumbent will be responsible for delivering high quality antibody leads for further development as potential therapeutic candidates or as ADCs. The ideal candidate will have excellent skills and experience in antibody production and characterization including but not limited to upstream protein production (molecular biology, mammalian cell culture, and harvest experience), and downstream protein/antibody experience (protein purification and analytical assessment of antibodies for purity, developability, and stability). Experience in the in vitro assessment of antibody binding and activity is a plus.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Design and execute experiments to generate bispecific and multi-valent antibodies including cloning, and protein expression to advise on feasibility of the platform for development purposes.

• Produce high-quality antibodies, bispecifics, and recombinant proteins to support the group's discovery and prioritization efforts.

• Evaluate, select, manage, and track activities of external CROs needed to support all protein and antibody production needs.

• Play a role in assessing protein structure/function as applied toward the evaluation of biologics for developability and large-scale manufacturing.

• Comply with company health and safety policies and general laboratory practices.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

No supervisory responsibilities

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE/KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS:

Education:

• Bachelor's degree in related scientific discipline such as molecular biology, biochemistry, biology or microbiology and a minimum of seven (7) years of experience in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical industry; or,

• Master's degree in related scientific discipline such as molecular biology, biochemistry, biology or microbiology and a minimum of five (5) years of experience in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical industry.

• PhD degree in related scientific discipline such as molecular biology, biochemistry, biology or microbiology and zero (0) years of experience in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical industry.

• Equivalent combination of education and experience

Experience:

• Experience and knowledge with antibody discovery and engineering platforms is highly desirable.

• Experience with developing immunogens and screening reagents for antibody discovery campaign including soluble proteins as well as cell surface proteins over-expressed on cells.

• Experience in sorting cells/flow cytometry for target expression.

• Experience and knowledge in mammalian cell culture and mammalian protein expression.

• Experience in the purification of proteins and antibodies using various modes of chromatography desirable.

• Experience with state-of-the art technologies (including process automation) to support ongoing protein/antibody production needs including transient and stable expression technologies.

• Experience writing summaries, reports, presenting scientific data/results to internal and external collaborators.

Knowledge/Skills:

• Solid understanding of mammalian protein/antibody expression, structure, and activity.

• Ability to set goals with an understanding of priorities and impact to program, the department and the organization.

• Strong communication skills for interacting with external CRO scientists and representatives.

• Ability to design and execute activities/studies aimed at producing and characterizing recombinant proteins/antibodies, to interpret experimental results and to formulate conclusions and next-steps based on the data generated.

• Prior experience with electronic laboratory notebook documentation and workflow management is a plus.

• Familiarity and prior experience in cell line development activities is a plus.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

*Environment: primarily working in laboratories or in office.

*Exposures encountered: Potential exposure to hazardous chemicals/materials.

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If you like wild growth and working with happy, enthusiastic over-achievers, you'll enjoy your career with us!

DISCLAIMER
The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state or local protected class.