Portfolio Company Job Board

Find a job at one of our innovative portfolio companies
Sands Capital
companies
Jobs

Research Associate or Senior Research Associate, LNP Formulation

Earli

Earli

Redwood City, CA, USA
Posted 6+ months ago

About Earli

The mission of the Biotechnology startup Earli Inc. is large and ambitious: to detect and then cure cancer at its earliest stages, effortlessly and pain free. In other words, ‘make cancer a benign experience’. The technology which grounds the company’s efforts ushers in a new era in “synthetic biomarkers” as a novel methodology to detect cancer and then subsequently localize and then treat the cancer. The enabling technology utilizes “synthetic biomarkers” as a novel methodology to detect, localize and ultimately destroy cancer. Founded by Sam Gambhir, Cyriac Roeding and David Suhy, the company is well funded by world-class entrepreneurs and venture capital firms. Earli, Inc. is currently based in Redwood City, California.

Who You Are

  • You share our same sense of dedication, scientific passion and entrepreneurial spirit
  • You work well in a fast-paced and extremely focused startup environment
  • You are not only smart, but clever and constantly think outside the box
  • You are able to make logical decisions in an instant when there is little time to evaluate
  • You are a natural communicator and relationship builder
  • You stay calm under high pressure and stress
  • You have the ability to multi-task in a serious way, with an extreme attention to detail
  • You become a representative of the core DNA of the company through who you are

The Position

Earli Inc. is currently seeking a high-caliber Research Associate/Senior Research Associate for LNP Formulation within the Delivery Team.

Your Primary Responsibilities

  • Routinely formulate high-quality lipid nanoparticles (LNP) encapsulating DNA that meet specifications for testing in mouse models. Assist in scale-up operations to produce LNP batches for large animal studies
  • Employ various mixing technologies (microfluidics, impingement jet mixing, etc.) and downstream operations (dialysis, TFF, etc.) for LNP formulation
  • Perform detailed biophysical characterization of LNPs by Dynamic Light Scattering, Fluorescence Spectroscopy, and HPLC to measure LNP size, polydispersity, encapsulation efficiency, lipid composition, API integrity, and potency
  • Troubleshoot formulation and equipment challenges using creative and independent problem-solving approaches, using published literature as a guide
  • Serve as a single point-of-contact with Earli’s translational biology team to provide formulations for in vivo studies to meet dosing schedules
  • Perform mammalian cell culture and in vitro cell-based assays such as reporter gene expression assays to analyze formulation potency
  • Perform assays such as quantitative PCR and RT-PCR, luminescence, and ELISA assays from cell/tissue lysates and serum in a reproducible and careful manner
  • Document protocols, materials, and results and maintain an extremely thorough electronic laboratory notebook
  • Communicate findings internally to team via presentations and written reports.

Your Required Experience, Knowledge and Skill

  • BS or MS degree in physical/life sciences or engineering discipline, with >2 years biotech industry experience
  • Prior experience with Lipid Nanoparticle formulation with siRNA, mRNA, or DNA using ionizable lipids (not merely off-the-shelf transfection reagents) is required for this role
  • Experience with a wide variety of chemical/biochemical research methods (e.g. buffer preparation, protein purification, plate-based absorbance and fluorescence assays) is required
  • Experience with mammalian cell culture, cell-based assays (luminescence, fluorescence, etc.) and molecular biology techniques such as nucleic acid extraction/purification and quantitative RT-PCR is preferred
  • A ‘self-starter’ mentality with strong motivation and a keen drive to excel individually and in a team
  • Excellent verbal communication, organization, time management, and interpersonal skills
  • Ability to think independently, multi-task effectively, and fully integrate into a high achieving team environment

If interested in applying, please attach a CV or have a well-developed LinkedIn profile for us to be able to assess your background.

We look forward to hearing from you!