Scientist, Autoimmunity

Precigen, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of intrexon, is seeking a highly motivated and creative research Scientist, Autoimmunity (level determined by candidate experience) to join our team in Germantown, MD.  This exciting opportunity will focus on autoimmune diseases and involves extensive hands-on experimental immunology. The successful candidate will have a strong background in immunology, characterization of T cells and autoimmune diseases. The successful candidate will have an in-depth understanding of T cell biology and significant experience with characterizing pathogenic or regulatory T cell phenotype and functionality.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Set up the evaluation strategy using in vitro studies with human or mouse T cells and in vivo murine models to test novel adoptive T cell therapies.
• Perform correlative studies to evaluate the transfer, persistence and function of antigen-specific T cells in human clinical trials of adoptive T cell immunotherapy. 
• Utilize appropriate technology, i.e. Outlook, PowerPoint, and other programs to create and distribute reports and key information.
• Coordinate parallel tasks across multiple projects, demonstrating prioritization to manage timelines and deliverables.
• Interpret and effectively execute upon a variety of instructions provided in written, oral, diagram or schedule formats.            

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Ph.D. in Immunology, Cellular Biology or Molecular Biology.
• Three (3) or more year’s post-doctoral experience in academia or industry.
• Proficient in primary immune cell isolation from tissues and in primary tissue culture techniques; hands-on experience with mouse disease models (autoimmune and/or GVHD) is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience in the following techniques or tools:
• Cellular Immunology: Functional cell based assays (proliferation, T cell activation, Treg suppression), multi-color flow cytometry, cytokine analysis (intracellular, ELISA, Luminex), CD4 T cell subset differentiation and analysis
• Molecular biology: electroporation and viral transduction of immune cells, qRT-PCR, Western blot
• Software: FlowJo, FACSDiva, statistical analysis (e.g. GraphPad Prism), Microsoft Office

DESIRED KEY COMPETENCIES:

• Ability to understand and execute on the company’s mission and values.
• Foster innovation through creative solutions.
• Enjoy working as a member of a dynamic multidisciplinary team in an entrepreneurial environment.
• Basic understanding of statistics, data analysis, and assessment of reproducibility and reliability of experimental data.
• Ability to organize, interpret and communicate complex data sets and project updates in a clear and concise manner to key stakeholders.
• Possess positive interpersonal skills including conflict resolution, with the ability to interact with individuals from a variety of levels and function.
• Maintain a high degree of ethical standard and trustworthiness.
• Capable of fostering change in an organization.
• Energized by accomplishments and excellence in the workplace.

EOE MFDV