We are a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing allogeneic invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cell therapies to treat cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. Our iNKT cells, which we refer to as INTELLIGENT iNKT™ cells, are designed to have the innate capacity to hone to the site of diseased tissue, including cancer, and recruit key components of the immune system to fight disease. iNKT cells combine properties of both T and natural killer (NK) cells and tune their response based on individual elements of the tumor or disease microenvironment. Our development pipeline includes off-the-shelf iNKT cell product candidates to treat hematologic and solid tumors. We believe these product candidates have the potential to help us treat a significantly larger patient population than is currently served by autologous Chimeric Antigen Receptor T, also known as CAR-T cell therapy.

This Scientist position is for a cell therapy scientist for development and running preclinical in vivo and in vitro models of our allogenic iNKT cell therapy product.  We are looking for an experienced and innovative in vivo scientists with a strong background in cancer immunotherapy and murine models (syngeneic and xenograft) to join the rapidly growing AgenTus R&D team.  This position will be responsible for generating new murine models for iNKT cell therapy platform including combination therapies with checkpoints and other modalities. You will be responsible for implementing new assays, technologies, and strategies to understand disease mechanisms and drugs mechanisms of action.  This lab-based role’s responsibilities include the design and execution of in vivo preclinical studies and the development of ex vivo functional assays to characterize drug products and evaluate and propose therapeutic combinations with our allogenic iNKT cell platform.  If you are an individual who is excited to take on new challenges in a dynamic start-up environment, you will find a welcome and stimulating working environment at AgenTus.

Responsibilities: About the Role

• Design and execution of in vivo preclinical studies aimed at identifying anti-cancer combination therapies.
• Contribute to the development of next-generation allogeneic CAR iNKT cells for solid tumors.
• Contribute to the preparation of SOPs, technical documents, project report summaries, laboratory protocols and other compliance documents.
• Work collaboratively with other scientists to coordinate and execute in vivo studies
• Present at group meetings and project team meetings.
• Train and mentor other scientists in the group as needed.

Qualifications: About You

• PHD (+0-2 years experience) or MS degree in immunology or related scientific field with 5+ years experience. Prior industry experience is a plus
• Experience in working with murine model with expertise in blood collection and tissue processing is required.  Experience with mouse manipulation including injections techniques (i.v., i.p., and s.c) is preferred.
• Experience in testing efficacy in vitro and/or in vivo CAR-T or CAR-NK therapies is preferred but not required.
• Hands-on experience with in vitro and ex vivo phenotypic and functional assays of primary mouse immune cells, including multicolor flow cytometry, cytotoxicity, proliferation, and cytokine assays (Luminex, ELISA, MSD)
• Excellent communication, technical writing and presentation skills are essential as are excellent organizational and record-keeping skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Diva and FlowJo software is required. Knowledge of statistics is desirable.

What are we offering?

• A dynamic, fun and learning culture
• Exposure to pioneering science and the full scope of the drug development process
• Innovative thinking: Speed of adopting new technologies, clear prioritization, using analytics to accelerate agile development
• A well accomplished team of scientists and engineers with broad experience and passion about science
• A unique opportunity to help develop state-of-the-art platforms and strategy of a burgeoning company
• Management Team with broad experience and passion about the science
• Career support and leadership opportunities within AgenTus 
• Membership of a growing, dynamic and collegial team across different functional groups
• Opportunity to contribute and work with different modalities for treating cancer