Postdoctoral Scholar, Bioanalytical Discovery & Development Sciences

Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson · Pharma · Spring House, PA +1

Postdoctoral scholar to develop and validate an open, amplification-coupled immunoaffinity platform for reliable quantification of low-abundance protein biomarkers. The role involves assay design, optimization, characterization, benchmarking, and documentation to support therapeutic development and translational studies.

What you'd actually do

  1. Leading the design, development, and optimization of ultra-sensitive, amplification coupled immunoaffinity assays to enable reliable quantification of low abundance biomarkers (targeting sensitivity down to fg/mL) using standard laboratory instrumentation.
  2. Leading head‑to‑head benchmarking of in‑house assays against orthogonal methods (LBA, LC‑MS) and commercial ultra‑sensitive platforms to compare LOD/LLOQ, precision, sample requirements, and tech‑transfer readiness.
  3. Collaborating with cross‑functional teams (PK/PD, bioinformatics, translational science, and external partners) to integrate biomarker data into study design and decision making, and to benchmark methods against orthogonal platforms.
  4. Producing and maintaining clear technical documentation, including Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), reagent quality control (QC) criteria, validation plans/reports, and method transfer packages to support reproducibility and technology dissemination.
  5. Communicating findings through written reports, presentations, and contributions to manuscripts; providing training and technical support for method transfer and laboratory adoption.

Skills

Required

  • immunoassays development
  • nucleic-acid amplification assays development
  • Immuno-PCR
  • proximity ligation/extension strategies
  • amplification-coupled immunoaffinity techniques
  • PCR assay design
  • qPCR assay design
  • UMI/barcode strategies
  • NGS library preparation workflows
  • template purification
  • contamination control
  • written communication
  • verbal communication
  • cross-functional team collaboration
  • technical results presentation

Nice to have

  • antibody/protein engineering
  • CNS biomarkers
  • low-abundance protein analytes
  • bioanalytical platforms for ultrasensitive detection
  • PK/PD/TE study design
  • assay validation
  • electronic lab notebook (ELN) systems
  • laboratory informatics platforms

What the JD emphasized

  • PhD in Molecular Biology, Bioengineering, Biochemistry, Immunology, Analytical Chemistry, or a related field is required.
  • Hands‑on experience developing and optimizing immunoassays or nucleic‑acid amplification assays (e.g., qPCR, digital PCR, NGS) is required.
  • Practical knowledge of Immuno‑PCR, proximity ligation/extension strategies, or related amplification‑coupled immunoaffinity techniques is required.
  • Strong molecular biology skills: PCR/qPCR assay design and optimization, UMI/barcode strategies, NGS library preparation workflows, template purification and contamination control is required.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills are required.
  • Ability to work in cross-functional teams and present technical results to diverse audiences is required.