Principal Scientist, Cell Therapy Vector Engineering

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

The Principal Scientist, Vector Engineering role at Johnson & Johnson focuses on developing novel Cell & Gene Therapies for unmet medical needs, specifically investigating engineered viral vectors for gene delivery to T cells to treat cancer. The role involves leading the design and experimental selection of genetic payloads with complex architectures and building experimental workflows to establish design rules for delivering these payloads to primary T cells. This is a research and development role within the biotherapeutics R&D function, focused on biological engineering and molecular design.

What you'd actually do

  1. Lead the design and experimental selection of genetic payloads with complex architectures (e.g. multiple expression cassettes and regulatory elements)
  2. Build rigorous experimental workflows to establish design rules and methods for delivering complex payloads to primary T cells
  3. Mentor junior colleagues to grow their experimental and analytical skills while establishing best practices within the team
  4. Maintain detailed records and clearly communicate designs and results to enable efficient data-driven decisions in partnership with stakeholders
  5. Contribute to a collaborative, creative, and rigorous culture of scientific discovery

Skills

Required

  • flow cytometry
  • familiarity with molecular design software (Geneious, Snapgene, Benchling)
  • Strong critical, scientific, and strategic thinking skills
  • Strong communication and organizational skills
  • ability to independently manage multiple projects in parallel
  • Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in cross-functional teams

Nice to have

  • primary T cell culture
  • molecular biology assays (such as qPCR or ddPCR, Western blot, ELISA)
  • high-throughput screening
  • familiarity with DNA/RNA sequencing
  • lentiviral vector payload design
  • scientific project leadership
  • Experience designing and evaluating multicomponent genetic elements in primary cells

What the JD emphasized

  • industry experience building molecular engineering workflows
  • evidence of scientific project leadership is strongly preferred
  • Experience designing and evaluating multicomponent genetic elements in primary cells is strongly preferred
  • Strong critical, scientific, and strategic thinking skills are required
  • Strong communication and organizational skills, with the ability to independently manage multiple projects in parallel, are required
  • Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in cross-functional teams is required