Associate Research Scientist

Ultimate Staffing Services; Alameda (CA); On-site; USD 58,000 - 69,000; Full time

Job summary

Ultimate Staffing Services is seeking an Associate Research Scientist to lead the design, development, and execution of biophysical and biochemical HTS assays in early drug discovery. You will develop automated 1536/384-well screening workflows to profile mechanism of action and advance programs toward development candidates.

The role requires hands-on expertise in SPR and HTS assay development, with experience in diverse readouts (ELISA, luminescence, FP) and laboratory automation.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with biophysical and biochemical assay technologies for small molecule discovery.
• Experience with SPR to characterize protein targets and complexes.
• Proven ability to develop HTS workflows and run screening campaigns.

Responsibilities

• Develop, optimize, and execute HTS biochemical/biophysical assays.
• Plan and execute HTS campaigns and MoA studies.
• Evaluate and implement new technologies and workflows for hit finding and lead optimization.
• Collaborate with internal teams and present data to management.

Skills

Biophysical assays

HTS campaigns

MoA studies

Assay development

Cross-functional collaboration

Scientific communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree + 5 years

Associate’s degree + 7 years

High School Diploma + 9 years

Tools

SPR

HTRF

AlphaLISA

Lumit

ELISA

Fluorescence Polarization (FP)

MSD

Luminescence-based assays

1536-well HTS

384-well HTS

Laboratory automation equipment

Job description

Associate Research Scientist (JN -092026-430090) Oakland, California

Salary: USD42.16 - USD42.16 per hour

Associate Research Scientist

Pay Rate: $42.16/hr.

Duration: 12 months

Location: Alameda, California

Shift: 8am-5pm PST with some flexibility

Job Description -

Top Skills:

• HTS Assay Dvelopment & Screening (1536/384)
• Biophysical Assays (SPR Preferred)
• Experience with technologies such as: HTRF, AlphaLISA, MSD, ELISA, Fluorescence Polarization (FP), Luminescence-based assays
• Laboratory Automation & Automated Screening Workflows

SUMMARY/JOB PURPOSE:

The candidate is responsible for conceptualization, development, optimization and execution of biophysical and biochemical assays to support hit identification and validation efforts in early-stage small molecule drug discovery projects. This scientist is also responsible for the development of automated High-Throughput Screening (HTS) biochemical (1536-well plate) and/or biophysical assays to profile compound mechanism of action (96-and 384-well plate formats) to advance research programs from discovery to development candidate nomination.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Independently develop, optimize and execute small molecule compound profiling and HTS biochemical and biophysical assays
• Consistently contribute to the design, planning, and execution of HTS campaigns and mechanism of action (MoA) studies
• Independently nominates, evaluates, and implements new technologies, protocols, and workflows to support projects from hit finding, hit validation, to lead optimization stages, as well as MoA studies
• Collaborates with internal groups and departments to discuss and resolve project and/or department needs

• Presents data and reports on project status to department head/manager and at discovery project and research meetings
• Communicates scientific results to manager, department, and project team partners and/or collaborators

• Maintains laboratory notebook in a complete, consistent, and concise manner in accordance with company intellectual property policies and practices
• Comply with company health and safety policies and general laboratory practices
• Other responsibilities, as assigned

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• No immediate supervisory responsibilities

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE/KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS:

Education/Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in related discipline + five years of related experience; or
• Associate’s degree in related discipline + seven years of related experience
• High School Diploma/GED + nine years of related experience
• Equivalent combination of education and experience.

Expected Experience:

• Hands-on experience with variety of biophysical and biochemical assay technologies relevant to small molecule drug discovery is required
• Thorough knowledge of and experience with surface plasmon resonance (SPR) techniques to discover and characterize small molecule-protein target complexes is highly desired
• Thorough knowledge of assay development for HTS applications, designing workflows, managing, and executing screening campaigns is required
• Significant experience in developing both biophysical and biochemical assays in 1536- and 384-well plate formats is required
• Hands-on experience with a variety of laboratory automation equipment (e.g. liquid handlers, dispensers, readers) is a strong plus

Additional Knowledge/Skills:

• Broad understanding of biophysical (SPR, MST, NanoDSF, BLI, thermal shift assays, etc.) and biochemical assays (HTRF, AlphaLISA, Lumit, MSD, ELISA, FP, GLO, etc.) as well as the detection technologies used in their execution
• Working knowledge to apply a variety of cutting-edge automation tools to enable biophysical and biochemical assay development and execution
• Remains current with relevant scientific literature and advancements in lab technologies and new drug discovery technologies/methodologies and suggests their implementation
• Experience characterizing small molecule heterobifunctional degraders and/or molecular glues is a plus
• In discussion with manager, sets goals with understanding of priority and impact to projects, the department, and organization. Solid understanding of how individual experiments fit within a larger discovery project
• Ability to collaborate with a cross-functional team on extremely complex problems
• Ability to multi-task in a fast-paced dynamic environment while delivering high quality work
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills

WORKING CONDITIONS:

• Environment: primarily working in laboratory

Travel not required