Senior/Principal Research Scientist, Computational Chemistry Research

About IDEAYA Biosciences:
IDEAYA Biosciences (NASDAQ: IDYA) is a public, clinical-stage synthetic lethality-focused precision medicine oncology company committed to the discovery and development of targeted therapeutics for patient populations selected using DNA sequencing and other molecular diagnostics. Our approach integrates extensive capabilities in identifying and validating translational biomarkers with small molecule drug discovery to select patient populations most likely to benefit from the therapies we are developing. We are applying these capabilities across multiple classes of precision medicine, including direct targeting of oncogenic pathways and synthetic lethality – which represents an emerging class of precision medicine targets. We believe this diversified approach will enable us to deliver the right medicine to the right patient to drive a more robust clinical response.
IDEAYA recently announced a landmark strategic partnership with GSK in Synthetic Lethality for certain pipeline programs. The GSK partnership is transformative and enables IDEAYA and GSK to collectively build an industry leading platform and pipeline in Synthetic Lethality. For more information, please see www.ideayabio.com.

The Opportunity:

We are seeking a talented and highly qualified Computational Chemist with significant pharmaceutical industry experience to join our multidisciplinary team. The successful candidate will support project teams through target identification, hit discovery, lead optimization and ultimately drug candidate selection. The candidate is expected to have a high degree of independence and proven track record of applying modern computational chemistry techniques to advance small-molecule drug discovery programs. The qualified candidate will be creative and detail-oriented with a passion for drug discovery.

As part of the drug discovery team, the candidate will perform drugability analysis, docking and related analysis, and carry out virtual screens to enhance IDEAYA’s drug discovery pipeline. The candidate will work collaboratively with medicinal chemists and project teams to identify novel chemistry starting points and design compounds with improved potency, selectivity, functional activity and/or ADME properties.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in Computational Chemistry or related discipline with 3+ years (depending on level) pharmaceutical or biotech experience demonstrating a strong understanding of a subset of computational methods as applied to drug discovery
• Experienced in applying molecular modeling methods to structure, ligand and fragment-based drug discovery
• Familiar with commercial modeling software (e.g., Schrodinger, MOE, OpenEye) and other specialized computational techniques, with emphasis on the Schrodinger Suites
• Familiar with molecular dynamics, quantum mechanics, and methods to estimate ligand affinity
• Ability to multi-task and set priorities on multiple projects
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills and scientific creativity are essential
• Ability to work in collaborative project teams and one on one with medicinal chemists to identify novel chemistry starting points and design compounds with improved potency, selectivity, functional activity and/or ADME properties
• Active participation in drug design process in addition to analyzing the designs of others.

Preferred Requirements:

• Experience with a subset of computational methods including structure and ligand-based virtual screening, scaffold morphing, programming, statistics, data analysis, QSAR derivation and application, Pharmacophore, and ADME modeling
• Expertise in Schrodinger Drug Discovery Suites a plus
• Rudimentary understanding of drug chemistry concepts
• Awareness of current developments in computational chemistry and ability to identify opportunities to advance the science in this field
• Rudimentary level of Python programming a plus

The Company complies with all laws respecting equal employment opportunity and does not discriminate against applicants with regard to any protected characteristic as defined by federal, state, and local law. This position requires you to work onsite at the Company’s facilities and the Company requires that all employees working in its facilities be fully vaccinated (except as required by applicable law). Therefore, this position requires you to be fully vaccinated from COVID-19, subject to reasonable accommodations for medical or religious reasons, and/or as otherwise required by applicable law. The Company considers you fully vaccinated once 14 days have passed since you received either the second dose in a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine series or a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine must have been FDA approved, have emergency use authorization from the FDA, or, for persons fully vaccinated outside of the U.S., be listed for emergency use by the World Health Organization.

Benefits
When you're at IDEAYA, you will be in the midst of brilliant minds working on precision medicine therapies to help cancer patients. We are passionate and committed about being on the forefront of oncology medicine, which means we all have a high internal drive that is at the very core of every person at IDEAYA. We are inquisitive, ask deep questions, and are data-driven innovators who like to collaborate and use team work to move science forward.

Ideaya is an equal opportunity employer. In accordance with applicable law, Ideaya does not discriminate in hiring or otherwise in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital or veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status. EOE/AA/Vets.