Associate Director / Principal Scientist, CAR Czar

Description:

Fate Therapeutics is seeking a talented individual with expertise chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) biology and development to join our research and development team to lead our CAR development activities. This position will co-lead ongoing effort focused on new binder discovery and lead the development and optimization of novel chimeric antigen receptors tailor made for immune cells, including T cells, NK cells, Tregs and Macrophages in various disease settings. This role will also lead efforts to generate and characterize CAR designs and novel binding domains for incorporation into Fates off-the-shelf iPSC-derived immune cell platform and the development of product candidates to maintain the Companys leadership in the field of off-the-shelf cell therapy. As such, a successful candidate will have demonstrated a successful track-record in CAR design and optimization and will be comfortable operating as part of a multidisciplinary program team. The candidate will also participate in ongoing collaboration research being conducted with world class academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies. In addition to strong analytical and experimental design skills, proficiency with immunological-based approaches and techniques (both in-vitro and in-vivo), mammalian cell culture and biology, and familiarity with current cytometry, molecular biology, gene-editing, and protein engineering of lymphocytes are needed to be successful in this position. The candidate will join a dynamic and growing team under a Director of Cancer Immunotherapy and will be located at the Companys corporate headquarters and research facilities in San Diego, California.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and lead experimental strategies for comprehensive optimization and evaluation of candidate CAR designs
• Provide insight and help develop internal target discovery initiatives focused on various diseases including cancer, autoimmune and infectious disease
• Lead the design, execution, and interpretation of study plans to optimize and evaluate CAR designs
• Provide subject matter expertise and leadership for both direct reports and project team members to drive efficient communication and project completion
• Perform experiments to generate decision-making data for the evaluation of CAR design features
• Provide direction to the R&D executive leadership on product development strategies
• Work closely with molecular engineering team to identify and generate CAR designs and cell line tools needed for novel CAR evaluation
• Manage research plans and progress of projects performed by contract research organizations
• Provide guidance on CAR design parameters in collaboration with program biology teams
• Critically evaluate and interpret datasets leading to go/no go decisions on candidate CAR designs and compile comprehensive datasets supporting each CAR asset

Qualifications:

• PhD degree in Immunology, Cell Biology or related fields with a minimum of 5 years relevant experience in CAR-T, CAR-NK and TCR/TIL cell therapy, preferably in a mid-stage biotech or pharmaceutical setting
• Knowledge of antibody screening methods and technologies is a plus
• In-depth experience with design and biology of chimeric antigen receptors
• In-depth experience in mammalian cell culture
• In-depth experience conceptualizing, developing, and executing assays for primary human T or NK cells
• Experience with IncuCyte and/or xCELLigence platforms is a plus
• Experience with current molecular biology techniques for editing and engineering of T cells and NK cells is a plus
• Proven ability to coordinate with multiple researchers for scheduling and execution of complex experiments
• Ability and willingness to provide strategic leadership and hands-on work when needed
• Excellent communication and organization skills are essential
• Prior management experience required
• Positive outlook and a team-oriented attitude

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• Will require working with cells and cell lines of human and/or animal origin
• Will require working with hazardous materials
• 100% on-site work at our research facilities in San Diego, CA
• Evening and weekend work as necessary

The preceding job description indicates the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. Additional and incidental duties related to the primary duties may be required.

About Fate Therapeutics, Inc.

Fate Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of first-in-class cellular immunotherapies for patients with cancer. The Company has established a leadership position in the clinical development and manufacture of universal, off-the-shelf cell products using its proprietary induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) product platform. The Company’s immuno-oncology pipeline includes off-the-shelf, iPSC-derived natural killer (NK) cell and T-cell product candidates, which are designed to synergize with well-established cancer therapies, including immune checkpoint inhibitors and monoclonal antibodies, and to target tumor-associated antigens using chimeric antigen receptors (CARs). Fate Therapeutics is headquartered in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit www.fatetherapeutics.com.