Scientist/Senior Scientist, Protein Design

Company: Flagship Pioneering, Inc.
Location: Somerville
Posted on: June 26, 2022

Job Description:

Company Summary: Tessera Therapeutics is an early-stage life sciences company pioneering Gene Writing, a new biotechnology designed to offer scientists and clinicians the ability to write small and large therapeutic messages into the genome, thereby curing diseases at their source. Gene Writing holds the potential to become a new category in genetic medicine, building upon recent breakthroughs in gene therapy and gene editing while eliminating important limitations in their reach, utilization, and efficacy. Tessera Therapeutics was founded by Flagship Pioneering, a life sciences innovation enterprise that conceives, resources, and develops first-in-category companies to transform human health and sustainability. Position Summary: Tessera is seeking a talented, creative, and self-motivated Protein Design Scientist to join our expanding Data Sciences team. This scientist will use computational protein modeling and design methods to support the discovery and engineering of novel gene editing technologies. This individual will also work closely with computational and bench scientists to develop and apply protein engineering strategies enabled by machine learning and deep neural networks. The position requires a strong foundation in computational biophysics and structure-based protein design. This role will contribute scientific and technical expertise to a multidisciplinary team, emphasizing conceptualization, experimentation, data analysis, presentation, and strategic planning. Key Responsibilities: Develop and apply protein modeling and design strategies to advance Tessera's Gene Writing platform. Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team to devise, train, refine, and deploy deep neural network models using public and proprietary sequence, structure, and function data. Collaborate closely with experimental scientists to realize protein designs, collect and analyze data, and build mechanistic intuition and biochemical understanding. Mentor junior scientists to collectively achieve team goals. Drive external collaborations where necessary to augment internal capabilities. Present scientific findings to broad audiences including senior leadership to drive decision making in program teams. Basic Qualifications: Ph.D. in Computational Biology, Biophysics, Biochemistry, Bioengineering, Computational Chemistry, Computer Science, or related discipline. 3+ years of experience in applying computational or machine learning methods to model and engineer proteins. Strong foundation in computational biophysics and structure-based protein design. Fluency in one or more programming languages, especially Python. Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, ability to work with colleagues from diverse scientific backgrounds and cultures. Preferred Qualifications: Proficiency in machine learning, especially in deep neural network models of protein evolution, structure, or function. Track record of success working in a fast-paced, cross-functional, and rapidly growing organization. Familiarity with laboratory protein engineering techniques, including library design and construction. Experience with recent advances in gene therapy and development of gene editing platforms as therapeutics. Experience in virology or mobile genetic elements a plus. More About Flagship Pioneering Flagship Pioneering conceives, creates, resources, and develops first-in-category life sciences companies to transform human health and sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, the firm has, through its Flagship Labs unit, applied its unique hypothesis-driven innovation process to originate and foster more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in over $50B in aggregate value. To date, Flagship has deployed over $2.2B in capital toward the founding and growth of its pioneering companies alongside more than $18B of follow-on investments from other institutions. The current Flagship ecosystem comprises 41 transformative companies, including Axcella Health (NASDAQ: AXLA), Denali Therapeutics (NASDAQ: DNLI), Evelo Biosciences (NASDAQ: EVLO), Foghorn Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FHTX), Indigo Ag, Kaleido Biosciences (NASDAQ: KLDO), Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA), Rubius Therapeutics (NASDAQ: RUBY), Sana Biotechnology, Seres Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MCRB), and Sigilon Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SGTX). Flagship Pioneering and our ecosystem companies are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, "FSP") do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering's internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

Keywords: Flagship Pioneering, Inc., Somerville , Scientist/Senior Scientist, Protein Design, Other , Somerville, Massachusetts