Postdoctoral Scientist - Targeted Nucleic Acid Delivery

At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.

Delivery, Device, and Connected Solutions (DDCS) is an organization within the Molecular Innovation Hub (MIH) at Eli Lilly and Company. DDCS is a diverse group of chemists, material scientists, and engineers with the critical responsibility of delivering Eli Lilly’s biologics portfolio. DDCS provides the scientific and engineering knowledge to discover and develop delivery solutions across a range of delivery technologies from injection devices to nanomedicines. Within DDCS the Drug Delivery and New Product Innovation (DDNPI) team is leading the effort to discover novel nanoparticle-based formulations for the efficient delivery of nucleic acids. This rational design effort will be driven by a close collaboration between nanoparticle experts, chemists, biologists, and material engineers.  The DDNPI team is currently recruiting a post-doc to support the design and production of responsive and targeted nanoparticles for subcellular delivery of nucleic acids. This role represents a unique opportunity to learn about the exciting cross-functional science being done to support nanoparticle delivery and contribute innovative solutions aimed to overcome cellular and subcellular barriers through materials-engineering and bioconjugate approaches.

Responsibilities:

Top candidates for this position will be expected to:

• Leverage a strong background in chemistry, materials engineering, and nucleic acid delivery to discover responsive nanoparticles for subcellular delivery of therapeutic cargoes.

• Apply resourceful and creative thinking to develop innovative ways that apply targeting ligands towards nano-delivery strategies including ligand design and bioconjugation approaches.

• Apply fundamental understanding of immune cell biology to enable gain-of-function or loss-of-function therapeutics.

• Design and execute experiments, analyze and interpret data to advance hypothesis-driven research.

• Demonstrate the ability to work effectively within a team environment but also show the self-initiative and resolved to conduct independent research and solve problems on an individual basis.

• Demonstrate strong communication (oral and written) skills.  Present work at group meetings or external conferences and work diligently to prepare manuscripts for publication.

• Show learning agility and discipline to rapidly learn and apply new materials platforms and gain a fundamental understanding of scientific concepts related to experimental work.

Basic Requirements:

• PhD in Materials Engineering/Chemical Engineering/Biomedical Engineering or equivalent.

• Experience level skills in material design, nanoparticle characterization, nucleic acid delivery, and bioconjugation.

Additional Skills/Preferences:

• Fundamental knowledge of immune cell biology.

• Experience with bio-responsive materials engineering.

• Formulation of nanoparticle loaded with nucleic acids and subsequent optimization of components for high encapsulation efficiency and ideal nanoparticle properties.

• Characterization of nanoparticle behavior in complex biological milieu, such as stability in serum ex vivo and biodistribution and PK in vivo.

• Mammalian cell culture and assays associated with measuring transfection efficiency, subcellular trafficking, toxicity, and immunogenicity in vitro.

• Good organizational skills that will enable success in a fast-paced environment.

• Ability to balance multiple activities, prioritize and manage uncertainty and risk.

• A strong desire to learn emerging technologies and new scientific concepts to support multi-disciplinary research.

• Good interpersonal skills and a persistent tendency for collaboration.

• Demonstrated proficiency in scientific writing and publication in peer-reviewed journals along with scientific presentation skills.

Additional Information:

• Travel: 0 to 10%

• Position: Indianapolis, IN; Lilly Technology Center-North (LTC-N)

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