AstraZeneca is seeking a scientist to support Translational Medicine efforts in Oncology as a member of the Clinical Proteomics team located in Gaithersburg, MD. The scientist should have experience in mass spectrometry-based proteomics, and will carry out translational studies involving biomarker quantitation from clinical samples (e.g., tumor biopsies) to accelerate clinical development of AZ’s oncology drugs. This position requires an individual with outstanding technical skills and scientific experience as well as excellent communication and collaborative skills. The individual must be able to work in a fast-paced clinical and product development organization to translate fundamental insights using proteomics into targeted therapeutics and biomarker hypotheses that can be tested in clinical trials. The successful candidate is expected to drive the publication of proteomics data in top-tier scientific journals.
• Develop, validate and implement MS-based proteomics technologies for clinical biomarker studies.
• Process clinical samples (e.g., FFPE tissue, frozen tissue, plasma) for translational and clinical studies according to SOPs.
• Be responsible for generating and maintaining high-quality PRM and DIA data for clinical studies, and collaborate with bioinformatics teams to demonstrate clinical utilities of protein biomarkers.
• Operate state-of-the-art LC-MS instruments, and ensure high-quality data generation by applying strict QC and routine maintenance. Stay current with the latest technologies to improve the protocols.
• Analyze data, summarize results, and present key results at functional reviews and project reviews.
• Ph.D. in bioanalytical chemistry or related field with 0-5 years post-doctoral experience in mass spectrometry-based proteomics. Candidates with M.S. in bioanalytical chemistry or related field with 4-10 years of post-graduate experience in mass spectrometry-based proteomics will be considered.
• In-depth understanding of various quantitation technologies including PRM and DIA, and their clinical applications.
• Experience in targeted proteomics and PRM/SRM assay development for oncology biomarkers.
• Strong theoretical understanding of protein biochemistry and practical knowledge of bottom-up proteomics.
• Experience in processing human tissue samples for proteomics analysis.
• Solid understanding of separation chemistry for proteins/peptides analysis with an experience of nano-flow UPLC.
• Extensive experience in instrumentation, trouble shooting, QC, standardization for proteomics workflow and pipeline development.
• Coding skills (R, Python) for data analysis, and ability to use/evaluate open-source software packages for processing mass spectrometry data.
• Experience in working independently and collaboratively in a matrixed environment with some experience in project management.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
