Senior Medicinal Chemist - Lead Drug Discovery & Design

Altos Labs; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 166,000 - 316,000; Full time

Job summary

Altos Labs in Redwood City/San Diego seeks a Senior/Principal Scientist in Medicinal Chemistry to advance small-molecule drug discovery from hit-to-lead. You will design drug-like molecules, optimize compounds, and collaborate across DMPK, structural biology, pharmacology, machine learning, and safety functions.

You are an accomplished organic chemist with a Ph.D. and 6+ years post-Ph.D. experience, skilled in structure-based design, and capable of leading chemistry programs and CRO partnerships.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry with 6+ years post-Ph.D. experience or equivalent in chemical research.
• Proven expertise in modern synthetic organic chemistry with a track record of publications or patents.
• Experience in drug discovery from hit identification to lead optimization and structure-based drug design.
• Strong communication skills and ability to present complex data clearly.
• Collaborative team player capable of leading chemistry programs and working with CROs.

Responsibilities

• Drive drug discovery programs by designing drug-like molecules and optimizing compounds.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with DMPK, structural biology, pharmacology, ML, and safety teams.
• Design and synthesize novel compounds, perform multi-step syntheses and retrosynthetic analysis.
• Analyze SAR data to guide design and program direction.
• Address potency, physical properties, and ADMET challenges.
• Support internal synthesis and CRO partnerships; provide broad chemistry support.
• Deliver presentations and communicate findings to internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrate leadership potential for leading chemistry programs and CRO management.

Skills

Synthetic/Medicinal Chemistry

Structure-Based Drug Design

Drug Discovery

Strong Communicator

Problem Solver

Collaborative Team Player

Results-Oriented

Education

Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry

Job description

Altos Labs in Redwood City/San Diego seeks a Senior/Principal Scientist in Medicinal Chemistry to advance small-molecule drug discovery from hit-to-lead. You will design drug-like molecules, optimize compounds, and collaborate across DMPK, structural biology, pharmacology, machine learning, and safety functions.

You are an accomplished organic chemist with a Ph.D. and 6+ years post-Ph.D. experience, skilled in structure-based design, and capable of leading chemistry programs and CRO partnerships.