Job Description

Juvena Therapeutics is seeking a highly motivated scientist to join our growing Protein Science group, who will be an integral part of our drug discovery platform expansion to include new molecular scaffolds such as fusion proteins and other biologics. We are searching for an individual who is excited to work as a scientist in an intimate and small team focused on the discovery, preclinical validation, and clinical translation of novel protein therapeutics for chronic and rare degenerative diseases. The Protein Science team is responsible for the lead identification, selection and optimization of therapeutic drug candidates with immense impact on cell and tissue regeneration. The ideal candidate will have expertise in cell culture, protein expression and purification as well as protein characterization assays. Reporting to the Director of Protein Science, the scientist will be a key part in growing our competencies and throughput in this team.

*Title commensurate with experience

Major Responsibilities 

• Primary project management of Contract Research Organization activities producing secreted proteins to support high-throughput screening.
• Coordinate the timely procurement, review, and execution of the Contract Research Organization agreements to conduct requisite development activities.
• Manage communication and activities among project leads for both internal and external groups to ensure milestone enabling activities are achieved on time and within budget.
• Advise on, institute, and enforce best practices for protein production and optimization.
• Develop and optimize upstream and downstream methods, including construct design, cell culture, protein expression, purification, and biophysical and biochemical characterization.
• Support early discovery and preclinical development by providing protein and analytical expertise to advance pipeline projects.
• Optimize the activity, stability, and pharmacokinetics of identified protein candidates by protein engineering to reach a desired target product profile.
• Present at group, company, and external meetings/conferences.
• Contribute to a dynamic and exciting culture that embraces teamwork and innovation.
• Maintain flexibility in supporting multiple discovery and preclinical projects as the company grows.
• Position Requirements and Experience 
• Ph.D. in biochemistry, proteomics or other relevant applied biochemical science degree.
• 2+ years of postdoctoral or industry experience in applied biochemistry technologies to solve complex protein engineering and production problems.
• Experienced in wet lab and dry lab protein engineering and production workflows, and troubleshooting technical challenges related to the wet lab workflow and data analysis.
• Demonstrated an ability to support biologic-based high-throughput screening projects.
• Documented experience with QC assay development and troubleshooting.

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous experience with optimizing mammalian expression systems in a high throughput manner.
• A strong track record of research accomplishments in protein design and protein engineering.
• Familiar with one or more structural modeling programs such as Rosetta, MOE, Schrodinger, etc.
• Great attention to detail; competent critical thinking and troubleshooting, strong organizational skills; excellent communication skills.

Compensation and Benefits

• Salary range: $110,00 - $145,000 (commensurate with experience)
• Annual bonus and stock options
• Health/Dental/Vision insurance
• Paid vacation and holidays 
• Partial 401K matching 

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