Scientist/Senior Scientist, AAV Engineering

ShapeTX® is pioneering the field of programmable RNA medicines to repair the genetic causes of diseases. By merging innovations in AI and RNA technology to generate and analyze hundreds of billions of therapeutic possibilities, ShapeTX is developing breakthroughs in RNA editing, next-generation AAVs, and disruptive gene therapy manufacturing. The ShapeTX platform enables pharma innovators to design treatments across a wide range of diseases, including rare genetic disorders as well as debilitating conditions, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and many more. You can find us at shapetx.com and on LinkedIn and Twitter.

At ShapeTX, we are a dynamic team of professionals who are dedicated and passionate about making cures a reality. Through diversity of thought, scientific knowledge, professional rigor and focus we are merging cutting-edge science with extensive drug development expertise to unlock cures to many debilitating diseases.

Shape Therapeutics is headquartered in Seattle, Washington with a satellite site in Boston, Massachusetts.

ShapeTX is looking for a strong molecular biologist to join the Platform Technologies team as Scientist/Senior Scientist, AAV Engineering. In this position, the successful candidate will join the AAVidTM high throughput discovery team and play a critical role in discovering and developing ShapeTX’s novel engineered AAV capsids. Successful novel AAV designs promise to vastly improve and enable clinical application of Shape’s own payload technologies as well as those of external partners. The ideal candidate will have deep molecular biology skills, with expertise in library design/generation with a demonstrated track record of library engineering (e.g. CRISPR, MPRA, siRNA, phage display, mRNA display or other similar libraries). Scientific creativity, a collaborative spirit, and a desire to work in a fast-paced startup environment are essential.

Title and compensation will be commensurate with level of experience.

Roles and Responsibilities may include:

• Perform cutting-edge AAV capsid design and library production
• Apply libraries to in vivo and in vitro models to evaluate capsid performance (tropism, biodistribution, production, etc.)
• Design and perform in vivo and in vitro validation experiments on lead designs
• Partner with disease biology leads to design and execute a delivery strategy for disease programs
• Optimize viral vector molecular designs for efficient delivery of ShapeTX’s RNA-targeted therapies
• Serve as a subject matter expert on library engineering technologies
• Keep organized and detailed records using an electronic laboratory notebook

Qualifications:

• PhD in molecular biology or related field
• 0-4+ years of post-doctoral research and/or biotech research experience
• Demonstrated track record of scientific success as evidenced by high impact peer-reviewed publications and/or patents

Preferred Skills and Experience:

• Broad molecular biology expertise
• Deep experience with a variety of cloning techniques (restriction enzyme cloning, Gibson Assembly, Golden Gate Assembly, etc.)
• Expertise in library engineering (e.g. CRISPR, MPRA, siRNA, Phage, or other similar libraries)
• Experience designing and optimizing library cloning and NGS validation
• Possession of a high degree of energy, flexibility, motivation and a strong work ethic
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team-science environment
• Ability to think outside the box and tackle challenges with a problem-solving attitude
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

ShapeTX offers a robust benefits package, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental and Vision coverage for employees and their eligible dependents. We provide eligible employees with 12 paid Holidays plus a one week winter break at year end. We are proud to offer a competitive paid parental leave benefit, an annual employee stipend for employees to use however they choose, a Flex Paid Time Off program (allowing flexible PTO for vacation, sick leave, and other purposes) and Company paid Long Term Disability. Employees are eligible to enroll in our Company’s voluntary 401k plan, voluntary Life/AD&D and Voluntary FSA’s.

The salary range for this role is $95,000-$145,000. The hired applicant's placement within the range is based on qualifications and professional experience. Additional compensation may include annual target bonus and/or sign-on bonus, equity grant and relocation bonus.

We aspire to Shape Life! not only through our science, but also through our commitment to foster an inclusive environment that supports diverse perspectives and experiences.