Scientist, Clinical Veterinary Specialist

Neurodegenerative diseases are one of the largest medical challenges of our time. Denali Therapeutics is a biotechnology company based in South San Francisco, California that is dedicated to defeating neurodegenerative diseases through rigorous therapeutic discovery and development. Denali is founded on the collaboration of leading scientists, industry experts, and investors who share the vision that scientific discovery energetically applied to translational medicine is the key to delivering effective therapies to patients.

The Opportunity

Denali is continuing to build a leading, innovative Small Molecule Discovery Chemistry organization that will strongly contribute to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. We are currently seeking a talented and motivated Scientist in Protein Biochemistry (Structural Biology) to provide strategic and technical leadership to small molecule protein discovery projects. The successful candidate will design, characterize and structurally enable small molecule targets using biochemical, biophysical and structural tools to drive lead selection and optimization.

Responsibilities (included but not limited to the following):

Approximately 70% of the time

• Serve as the operational lead on multiple programs to contribute to the timely completion and success of research projects. This includes coordinating in vivo study logistics, study preparation (i.e. tube labeling), sample management, and execution of the study
• Perform routine drug dosing in mice and rats by various routes of administration (IV, PO, IP, SQ, RO, IT) and in life sample collections (i.e. blood collection via submental, tail vein, jugular, saphenous, etc. and urine collection)
• Experience with in life rodent surgeries to include stereotaxic intracerebroventricular injections, pump implantation, etc.
• Perform necropsy procedures including terminal blood collection by cardiac puncture, perfusion of rodents and gross anatomical tissue harvesting
• Think creatively about ways to leverage novel techniques or tools for in vivo use
• Experience with various wet lab techniques desirable (i.e. tissue homogenizations, tissue sectioning/histology) as well as clear and concise communication of data
• Maintain accurate and complete laboratory records in a timely manner
• Collaborate with scientists across the organization to enable timely and thorough data generation
• Responsibilities require a work schedule that may include working outside of normal work hours, to meet business demands such as weekends/Holidays to support dosing (on a rotating schedule)

Approximately 30% of the time

• Serve as the expert to respond to questions and concerns raised by researchers related to the care, use, health, and welfare of mice/rats and provide veterinary advise and care as needed
• Interact with in vivo scientists to understand their in vivo research needs, engaging them in a flexible and constructive manner to address matters of ethical review with a focus on 3Rs, humane endpoints, and avoidance of adverse effects
• Train research staff on various components of proper animal use including preparation of animals for surgery, anesthesia, surgical techniques, post-operative monitoring, injections, and sample collection
• Conduct orientation, safety and animal welfare training for vivarium users
• Review/approve health reports for animal shipments coming in from non-approved vendors
• Serve as a voting member of the IACUC committee
• Provide veterinary reviews for IACUC protocols

• Manage site DEA activities and process

Requirements

• BS/MS in Biology/Neuroscience/related field or equivalent in college credits and work experience combined
• 3 plus years of related experience
• Extensive hands-on experience working with both mice and rats
• Must have strong work ethic, proficiency in animal welfare and overall knowledge for animal care and use
• Independent, highly organized, great attention to detail, ability to multi-task, and a strong desire to work in a highly collaborative and fast paced environment
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills

• Experience with computer applications such as MS Excel​, ​MS Word, MS PowerPoint

• Knowledge in some of the following wet lab technologies desirable: qRT-PCR, BCA, Western Blot, ELISA, and histology analysis

Denali is committed to its core company value of unity by creating a diverse and inclusive environment. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, s