Duration: 12 months with the possibility of extension and/or conversion based on business needs and performance.

Title: Scientist – Microbial Antibodies and Technologies Group in Early Vaccines & Immune Therapies (Contract-based)
Location: On-SIte in Gaithersburg, MD

Job Description

At AstraZeneca, you’ll have the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives every day. As one of the world’s premier pharmaceutical companies, our mission is centered on delivering life-changing products that advance world health and help fight and cure disease. As a Scientist in the microbial antibodies and technologies group in early Vaccines & Immune Therapies (eV&I) in Gaithersburg, MD, you’ll play a pivotal role in channeling our scientific capabilities to make a positive impact on changing patients’ lives.

The eV&I department at AstraZeneca is developing new and innovative monoclonal antibodies and vaccines against bacterial and viral pathogens. We’re constantly pushing the boundaries of science to deliver life-changing medicines to patients, with a passion for discovery and a pipeline to show for it. We’re pioneering innovative research and exploring novel platforms to deliver monoclonal antibodies and vaccines against viral and bacterial pathogens. We’re industry leaders in immunology, protein engineering, and translational science. We offer a unique and strong collaborative network as part of the AstraZeneca family, exploring synergies between small and large molecules.

AstraZeneca has a dynamic environment that fosters collaboration and innovation. We attract top minds and nurture and build top talents.

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and execute in vitro experiments to characterize and validate monoclonal and/or multispecific antibodies against bacterial pathogens.

Position Requirements

Experience:

• A successful candidate will be a well-grounded critical thinker capable of designing assays and executing experiments with a high degree of accuracy and reproducibility. Relevant experience in at least a few of the following areas is required:

Special Skills/Abilities:

• Broad and strong experience with relevant cellular and antibody-based immunological techniques to understand functional activity of monoclonal and multispecific antibodies in vitro and in vivo (bactericidal assays such as serum bactericidal or opsonophagocytic killing assays, cell-based cytotoxic neutralizing assay, and pharmacokinetic ELISA in animal sera) is required.
  

• Proficiency with in vitro-based assays to quantify pro-inflammatory mediators and serological responses in animals (ELISA, Luminex and MSD platforms, cell-based assays) is preferred.
  

• Experience working with infectious pathogens is required.
  

• Broad experience in animal procedures (intraperitoneal, intranasal, intramuscular injections and sample collection) is desirable.
  

• Willingness to get vaccinated against specific pathogens encountered as part of job activities.

The candidate must be an effective oral and written communicator, dedicated to maintaining high laboratory standards, good record-keeping, with high regard to quality and safety, and must possess good organizational and interpersonal skills in a highly interactive multidisciplinary team-oriented environment.

Job Complexity:

• The candidate will work with minimal supervision and is expected to be an independent problem solver to generate high-quality and reproducible data.

Educational Requirements

Education:

• A Master’s degree with 4-6 years of experience or Bachelor’s degree with 6-10 years of equivalent experience in in vitro assay development, bacteriology, cell biology, and in vivo work.

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