Lead Scientist, Microbial Expression & Process Development

BioSpace; Norwood (MA); On-site; USD 142,500 - 256,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare coverage

Well-being programs

Family planning benefits

Generous PTO

Investment opportunities

Location-specific perks

Job summary

Moderna is seeking an experienced leader to define E. coli host strain, vector, and expression-system strategy for recombinant enzymes and plasmids, supporting our technology platforms and pipeline.

You will design and optimize small-scale and scalable screening workflows, translate results into development leads, and mentor teams across molecular biology, analytics, and process development. The role offers a collaborative, in-person environment with a 70/30 in-office model, and a strong

Qualifications

• PhD in Molecular Biology, Microbiology or related field with 5+ years in industry.
• Experience engineering E. coli strains, vectors, and expression systems.
• Hands-on in microbial expression screening workflows for enzymes or plasmids.
• Strong knowledge of E. coli genetics, physiology, and stability.
• Ability to translate screening data into process-development decisions.
• Experience leading complex projects and communicating results clearly.

Responsibilities

• Own strategy for host strain, vector, and expression-system for production.
• Design and execute screening cascades to identify strong candidates.
• Define criteria for host/vector selection and induction strategy.
• Develop small-scale and high-throughput screening workflows.
• Lead strain/vector engineering to improve performance and robustness.
• Collaborate with CDMO teams to ensure actionable outputs.

Skills

E. coli engineering

Vector design

Expression-system development

Microbial screening workflows

DOE & data-driven approaches

Technical leadership

Education

PhD in Molecular Biology

MS with 10+ years of experience

BS with 12+ years of experience

Job description

Moderna is seeking an experienced leader to define E. coli host strain, vector, and expression-system strategy for recombinant enzymes and plasmids, supporting our technology platforms and pipeline.

You will design and optimize small-scale and scalable screening workflows, translate results into development leads, and mentor teams across molecular biology, analytics, and process development. The role offers a collaborative, in-person environment with a 70/30 in-office model, and a strong