Senior Upstream LVV Scientist — Vector Biology

Legend Biotech; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 146,410 - 192,164; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) retirement plan with company 1:

Eight weeks of paid parental leave

Paid time off and holidays

Job summary

Legend Biotech seeks an Upstream Principal Scientist for the Vector Biology Upstream team in Philadelphia, focusing on early LVV process development and establishing a scalable lentiviral vector platform to support in-vivo CAR-T programs.

You will bridge construct design with upstream outcomes, interfacing with Downstream, Analytics, and Technical Development to ensure end-to-end process coherence and readiness for technology transfer.

Qualifications

• MS degree with 10+ years; or PhD with 5-8+ years in Bioengineering/Cell Biology/related field.
• Demonstrated hands-on viral vector production and upstream process development experience.
• Experience with mammalian suspension cell culture and upstream bioprocessing.
• Early development of scalable LVV processes and ability to translate to manufacturable platforms.
• Strong DoE, data analysis, and risk-based decision making.

Responsibilities

• Define and optimize seed train strategies from shake flask to bench-scale bioreactor.
• Evaluate LVV constructs and vector optimization for manufacturability and potency.
• Design and optimize LVV production workflows including transient transfection and producer cell lines.
• Conduct media optimization, feeding strategies, and CPP identification for scale-up to 40 L+ bioreactors.
• Collaborate with Downstream to align harvest/clarification with upstream design.
• Generate DoE-based data packages for process lock and regulatory filings.
• Provide scientific leadership and strategic input to cross-functional teams in Vector Biology.

Skills

Molecular biology

Bioprocess engineering

Design of Experiments

Analytical skills

Oral and written communication

Upstream process development

Viral vector production

Mammalian cell culture

Data analysis

Education

MS degree with 10+ years

PhD with 5-8+ years

Tools

TFF (tangential flow filtration)

Chromatography

Molecular cloning

Cell culture facilities

Job description

Legend Biotech seeks an Upstream Principal Scientist for the Vector Biology Upstream team in Philadelphia, focusing on early LVV process development and establishing a scalable lentiviral vector platform to support in-vivo CAR-T programs.

You will bridge construct design with upstream outcomes, interfacing with Downstream, Analytics, and Technical Development to ensure end-to-end process coherence and readiness for technology transfer.