Senior Scientist, Cell Therapy Metabolic diseases, PK/PD and Biomarker discovery

About the role

Sana Biotechnology is growing, and we are hiring new team members who believe in the potential of cells and viruses as engineered medicines, who want to challenge status quo, and lead with the desire to work on novel ideas.  As a Sr. Scientist, Development Science, In vitro pharmacology and Biomarker discovery group, you will report to the Director of in vitro pharmacology and Biomarker discovery to characterize lead candidates for stem cell therapies products. This individual will generate data packs to inform PK/PD and dosing paradigms for stem cell therapy candidates and work closely with Sana’s Translational scientists to determine the therapeutic value of the cell candidates. With particular focus on PD and Biomarkers, this scientist will partner with Sana’s Research and non-clinical pharmacology colleagues to determine the identity and the efficacy of differentiated iPSC, particularly but not solely pancreatic beta cells in type 1 diabetes.

What you’ll do

• Serve as SME on metabolic diseases to characterize the pharmacology of iPSC-derived Sana’s metabolic diseases cells pipeline, including beta cells program
• In collaboration with PKPD scientist, lead quantitative pharmacology studies to develop and implement strategy to ensure dosing regimens for iPSC-derived beta cells treatment
• Develop, implement, and execute roadmap for analytical protocols in support of cell characterization, including biomarker assays, PD endpoints, functional characterization and cellular identity markers for lead candidates
• Partner with Sana’s Research teams to produce strategies designed to characterize therapeutic lead candidates
• Partner with Sana’s Development Science and Translational groups scientists to define and develop biomarkers strategy for iPSC-derived beta cells program
• Contribute to regulatory documentation, including IND applications, author related pharmacology sections
• Provide mentorship and management to junior researchers and leads in presentations and scientific discussions

What we’re looking for

Experienced scientist with PhD in relevant scientific discipline, at least 5+ years of industry (preferred) or academia laboratory experience. Alternatively, a Masters’ degree scientist with a minimum of 10+ years of industry experience and proven proficiency in independent research and design of laboratory experiments and techniques. 

• Proficient in understanding biological systems behind the Type 1 Diabetes. Deep understanding of the glucose metabolism and metabolic diseases, including Type 1 diabetes
• Has proven track of developing both in vitro and in vivo bioanalytical assays and protocols, including functional assays. Familiarity and / or direct hands-on experience with various analytical platforms is desired, including LBA, MSD, Flow, qRT-PCR, gene expression analysis, TR-FRET
• Demonstrated ability to support pharmacology studies, experience working with stem cell therapies preferred
• Extensive hands-on experience in working with mammalian cell lines (primary cells and immortalized) with demonstrated competence in sterile cell culture technique and standard laboratory procedures
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, attention to detail and data quality, and experience working on diverse collaborative teams
• Technical proficiency, scientific creativity, strong collaboration/influencing and independent thought 

What will separate you from the crowd

• Hands on experience with iPSC cultures and differentiation into metabolically relevant tissues
• Deep understanding of the Type 1 diabetes and related metabolism
• Demonstrated ability to support pharmacology studies
• Experience with relevant cellular cultures and platforms such has organoids, organs on chip, spheroids
• Experience with authoring regulatory documentation, for example, study and assay reports, analytical procedures, pharmacology sections for IND filings

What you should know

• Working safely in person on a predictable and regular in-person basis is an essential job function for this position, and the Company requires that all individuals working in-person be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, including receipt of a vaccine booster shot if recommended by the CDC

How we work together

• Lead from every seat – we seek to understand, act with honesty, and engage in the crucial conversations
• Thrive as a team – we hire amazing people, are intensely curious, and cultivate inclusion and personal connectivity
• Make it happen – we value vigorous debate, alignment around our decisions, and resilient execution

Get to know us

At Sana, we believe that a diverse workforce strengthens us as a company and helps us to achieve our mission to meaningfully change the outcome of many human diseases. This belief is a pillar of our business and is critical to our success. Our goal is that Sana is the place for talented people to bring their authentic selves to work, to have a great career and to deeply, positively impact patients.

Core to our values, we believe there is nothing more important than the health and wellness of you and your family. For benefit eligible employees, we cover 100% of the cost for employee health coverage and offer generous time-off, parental leave, short- and long-term disability, financial wellness programs, a 401(k) Plan, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, commuter subsidy and a variety of wellness offerings to support each person individually.

We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental or sensory disability (including the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability), genetic information, actual or perceived HIV or Hepatitis C infection, medical condition (cancer or a record or history of cancer and genetic characteristics), marital status, sexual orientation, sexual preference, pregnancy (including childbirth and related medical conditions), disability, veteran status, political ideology, taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

To perform this job successfully, you must be able to perform each job responsibility satisfactorily. The job description listed above is representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions described above.