Research/Sr. Research Associate, Clinical Assay Development And Research

Genocea's foundational technology, the ATLAS platform, is a high-throughput autologous cell assay that discovers T cell antigens thought to be important in fighting a patient's disease. ATLAS results are used to select validated neoantigens for a patient-specific vaccine and cell-based immunotherapies. We have recently initiated a personalized neoantigen-based cell therapy, GEN-011, which is in Phase 1/2a clinical trial. We are seeking an innovative Sr Research Associate/Research Associate to join the Translational Medicine team. This individual will play a critical strategic role in design and execution of complex immune-monitoring experiments with human clinical samples using established and novel procedures. The successful candidate will be a member of a team that evaluates the immunogenicity and efficacy of personalized oncology immunotherapies in clinical trials. The Clinical Assay Research Associate will be expected to design and execute complex immune monitoring experiments with human clinical samples utilizing established and novel procedures. The candidate will have demonstrated hands-on experience with assays such as immunophenotyping, Fluorospot/ELIPSOT, and other primary cell-based immunological assays. They will have experience with assay development, troubleshooting, validation and clinical testing. Demonstrated effectiveness as a member of a team is critical, and aptitude with clinical protocols and reports for senior management is expected. The candidate will be expected to be in the laboratory to perform experiments and clinical testing with other team members, have a strong, positive work ethic and be highly collaborative with other group members, and must have a strong background in immunology and/or cell biology. Knowledge of immuno-oncology and experience with assay automation are highly desirable, but not required.

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Primary Responsibilities

• Design, execute and analyze the development of assays to evaluate cell-mediated immune responses in clinical samples.

• Demonstrated experience with clinical biomarker assay development, and validation is necessary.

• Propose, plan and implement/execute experiments with minimal supervision.

• Provide technical resources for immunology method development, optimization, implementation and validation.

• Ability and willingness to work in the laboratory to perform human clinical testing and meet deadlines.

• Work collaboratively with Translational Medicine and other team members to understand their deliverables to achieve organization goals.

• Stay current with new developments and technologies in the field of immuno-oncology.

Competencies

• Excellent ability to perform hands on experiments, research, design, and organize projects and maintain detailed documentation

• Must have strong work ethic, organizational and time management skills

• Proven ability to multi-task and embrace change in an extremely fast-paced environment in order to produce quality deliverables for aggressive deadlines

• Independently motivated, detail oriented and good problem-solving ability

• Ability to work as part of a team, collaborating and communicating effectively with members of other functional groups

• Competent writing, editing and oral presentation skills required

• Must have strong interpersonal skills and desire to be a member of a team that values open communication

• A sense of humor and willingness to adapt is essential

Required Skills

• Experience with multi-color flow cytometry, flow panel design and flow data analysis is required

• Experience with clinical testing/clinical biomarker assay development and optimization is required

• Demonstrated experience with immunological assays to assess and characterize T cell function such as immunophenotyping, ELISPOT/Fluorospot, cytokine secretion, cytotoxicity and proliferation is highly desirable

• Strong computer skills and experience with Microsoft Office, FlowJo, and Graphpad Prism are essential

• Ability to work independently and as a part of a cross-functional team with a positive attitude is required

• Strong verbal and written communication skills are required.

• Ability to analyze data, draw conclusions, communicate results and compile technical reports.

• Familiarity with cell immunology and/or cell biology is highly desirable

• Excellent record keeping abilities to adequately record and document analytical data.

• Capacity to adapt, with a strong desire to learn new concepts and techniques

Education

• Master's degree or bachelor's degree with a minimum of 3-5 years of experience in biopharmaceutical industry

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