ProFound Therapeutics: Senior Scientist, RNA Biology

Company Summary:

ProFound Therapeutics is discovering proteins hidden within the expanded human proteome to uncover novel drugs and drug targets, producing first-in-class medicines for a multitude of diseases. The company’s ProFoundry™ Platform uses state-of-the-art protein detection technologies to systematically identify and validate proteins and dissect their therapeutic potential. The result is an ever-expanding database of tens of thousands of novel proteins, including their connectivity, functionality, and roles in health and disease. ProFound Therapeutics was founded in 2020 by Flagship Pioneering. For more information, please visit www.profoundtx.com.

Position Summary:

ProFound is seeking an exceptional scientist to join our Discovery team. In this role, you will use and develop robust tools rooted in RNA molecular biology to discover novel ORFs from human tissues that will become first-in-class protein drugs or drug targets. The ideal candidate will bring knowledge of mRNA translation, experience in next-generation sequencing and downstream analysis. Daily activities will include designing and conducting experiments aimed at investigating the dark proteome. The successful applicant will be engaged in several high-throughput sequencing efforts, such as ribosome profiling and long-read sequencing. The role assumes close collaborations with other teams to discover the most therapeutically relevant novel proteins. The candidate will have access to the state-of-art sequencing and mass-spectrometry platforms. This role is not limited to high-throughput methods and presents plenty of opportunities to develop assays and follow up on individual targets using every tool in the arsenal of a molecular biologists.

Excellent communication skills are essential to enable you to present results to a variety of stakeholders and effectively collaborate with scientists and leaders with a broad array of backgrounds in a matrix organization. This individual will also have the opportunity to provide insights and contribute to shaping the future direction of our platform.

Key Responsibilities:

• Participate in early discovery efforts that require agile, creative thinking and give an opportunity to lead the project from conception to computational analysis
• Design and execute molecular biology experiments in the field of RNA biology and eukaryotic translation
• Take on early discovery projects that require extensive literature search and accurate experimental execution
• Carry out NGS sequencing efforts on-site
• Confidently communicate, interpret, and present the results
• Maintain electronic lab notebook records of protocols and experimental details

Required skills:

• PhD in molecular biology, biochemistry, synthetic biology or a related field or equivalent working experience and track record. PhD for 0-2 years or MS with 5+ years of industry experience.
• Substantial in-depth knowledge of RNA biology and mechanisms of eukaryotic translation
• Hands-on experience with RNA workflows: IVT, hybridization, size selection, analytical QC
• Experience with NGS, including sample handling and basics of data analysis and interpretation
• Proficiency in RNA and DNA purification, qPCR and cloning
• Experience with luciferase cell-based assays evaluating RNA translation
• Eukaryotic cell culture maintenance
• Experience with ribosome profiling or RiboSeq is a strong plus
• Experience with techniques interrogating protein-protein interactions is a plus

Values and Behaviors

We are seeking individuals with an entrepreneurial spirit, strong communication skills, and comfort working in and contributing to a dynamic and cross-functional team environment. The level of the role will be commensurate with the education and years of experience of the identified candidate.

At Flagship, we recognize there is no perfect candidate. If you have some of the experience listed above but not all, please apply anyway. Experience comes in many forms, skills are transferable, and passion goes a long way. We are dedicated to building diverse and inclusive teams and look forward to learning more about your unique background.

About Flagship

Flagship Pioneering is a biotechnology company that invents and builds platform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health or sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $90 billion in aggregate value. Many of the companies Flagship has founded have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving