Principal Research Associate, Discovery Analytics

Who is BlueRock?
BlueRock Therapeutics LP is a clinical stage cell therapy harnessing the power of cell therapy to create a pipeline of new medicines for people suffering from neurological and ophthalmic diseases. Two of our novel investigational cell therapies, bemdaneprocel (BRT-DA01) for the treatment of Parkinsons disease and OpCT-001 for the treatment of primary photoreceptor diseases are clinical stage programs. BlueRock was founded in 2016 as a joint venture of Versant Ventures and Leaps by Bayer. Our culture is defined by the courage to persist regardless of the challenge, the urgency to transform medicine and deliver hope, integrity guided by mission, and community-mindedness with the understanding that we are all part of something bigger than ourselves.
What Are We Doing?
Our foundational science harnesses the ability to create and then direct the differentiation of universal pluripotent stem cells into authentic, functional cells that can be used as allogeneic cellular therapies to treat a broad array of diseases. We can also further engineer these cells, enabling them to produce enzymes, antibodies, and other proteins for additional therapeutic benefit. We are passionate about delivering on the promise of cellular and gene therapy, shaping the future of cellular medicine, and delivering new therapies to millions of patients with treatment options. We are seeking individuals who are collaborative, thrive in a fun and dynamic culture, and are steadfast in the commitment to advance cutting-edge cellular therapies to impact patients lives.
As part of BlueRock Therapeutics vision to change the future of medicine by enabling ground-breaking cell therapies, the candidate will be a key technical contributor of a dynamic and progressive team pioneering scaled somatic cell manufacturing processes utilizing state-of-the art culturing technology at increasing scales.
The successful candidate will drive assay discovery and development at BlueRock, NY, establishing critical characterization and quality assays for cell therapy products and manufacturing processes with minimal supervision. Expertise in cell and molecular biology is required. The ideal candidate will be a highly motivated individual who leads from the bench and enjoys having broad responsibilities and opportunities. Collaboration with a highly driven, world-class team of scientists and engineers promises an exciting and engaging work environment for motivated, self-starting candidates. Responsibilities:

• Independently design and executein vitroexperiments to assess and develop novel assays/biomarkers, techniques and technologies to characterize cell therapy development processes. Identify and determine appropriate ranges of (critical) assay process parameters to ensure robust, repeatable and accurate results with minimal supervision.
• Ensure that experiments, analytical methods, and data meet the requirements for the intended use of assays, which includes characterization, lot release and comparability.
• Perform flow cytometry, ELISA, analytical, cell-based, PCR-based and other assays as required.
• Collect and analyze data from various assays, track and trend data, and establish specifications for critical process controls.
• Author, review and approve SOPs, study protocols, reports and other scientific and quality documents.
• Identify and evaluate new technologies and incorporate them into product quality assessments as appropriate.
• Perform technology transfer of assays to the Quality Unit through training of personnel and support of further qualification/validation efforts.
• This position requires hands-on laboratory work.
• Present scientific data to colleagues in group meetings, prepare and present internal and external presentations (presentations, posters, publications).
• Perform additional duties to support the safe and efficient operation of the laboratory, and other duties as assigned.

Requirements:

• Bachelors in biological sciences with 7+years experience, or Masters with 6+ years experience, preferably in a biotechnology or pharmaceutical industry setting
• Strong experience with human pluripotent stem cell or mammalian cell culture
• Highly familiar with standard analytics equipment and procedures including, but not limited to Flow cytometry, ELISA, DNA/RNA analysis, cell-based and screening assays, protein analysis, sterility, mycoplasma, endotoxin, cell-counting, qPCR and ddPCR
• Design and develop assays for PCR analytics
• Demonstrated ability to develop and optimize biological and/or chemical assays
• Demonstrated ability to be highly productive and successful in a fast-paced work environment with excellent attention to details and meticulous bench work
• Demonstrated ability to cooperate with a larger team to solve a wide range of problems in creative and practical ways
• Demonstrated ability to write technical documents with minimal supervision
• Competency in computer skills and familiarity with Microsoft Office programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

Additional STI & LTI bonuses #LI-AL1
BlueRock Therapeutics Company Culture Highlights Winner of Boston Business Journal's Best Places to Work (Mid-size Company) 2023 Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Diversity 2022 Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Women 2022 Winner of Comparably's Award for Best CEO 2022 BlueRock Therapeutics is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably. Engineering Department is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably.
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Equal Opportunity Workplace: At BlueRock, we welcome and support differences and diversity and we are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. Please let us know if you require disability-related accommodation or other grounds protected by human rights legislation during the recruitment process so that we can work with you to meet your needs.