About the Company:
NextRNA Therapeutics, Inc. is a Boston-based biotechnology company leading the next revolution of RNA-directed therapeutics. Our focus is on identifying and drugging long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) with small molecules in oncology and neuroscience.
Our proprietary computational engine, combined with deep lncRNA biology expertise and strong drug discovery capabilities, positions us well to unlock the therapeutic value of lncRNAs, a vast and promising target space.
NextRNA has assembled an experienced team of industry leaders, biology and chemistry experts, and drug developers, all driven by a common passion for working together and having an impact on science and patients.
The Opportunity:
As a Scientist II /Senior Scientist, RNA Chemistry at NextRNA Therapeutics, you will join an interdisciplinary team of highly creative and talented individuals whose vision is to improve patients’ lives by expanding the space of RNA-targeted Therapies. You will be a key team member responsible for integrating biochemical technologies with our drug discovery pipeline.
About you:
- You are experienced in applying leading-edge biochemical technologies to solve challenging questions and have demonstrated this with a strong publication record
- You are prepared to apply your toolbox of technologies and experience to tackle new challenges, such as developing assays and techniques to probe novel modalities and targets
- You are driven, tenacious, passionate, and motivated to make a difference
- You are a team player, and collaboration is one of your strengths
- You are conscientious, organized, and detail-oriented
- You are curious, love learning, and are eager to take on hard problems
- You thrive in a fast-paced environment and enjoy pushing the edge of what is possible
What you'll do:
- You will apply your expertise in RNA Chemistry to identify RNA structure and interactions to determine minimal folding domains to enable small molecule drug discovery
- You will contribute to the strategy at the onset of new projects and play a key role in drug discovery
- You will explore and evaluate new biochemical methods to support drug discovery
- You will drive the development of experimental designs for understanding RNA folding and protein interactions
- You will develop, troubleshoot, and improve SHAPE-MaP and chemical probing techniques to ID RNA secondary structure. You will contribute to RNA construct design and in vitro transcription/purification.
- You will manage and actively engage in collaborations with CROs. You will work closely with a multidisciplinary team to identify strategies for screening and validating small molecule hits.
- You will work in a highly cross-disciplinary team while conducting your own independent experiments
Key Qualifications:
- You have a PhD with 3+ years of post-doctoral training with RNA in Biochemistry or equivalent
- Industry experience in an interdisciplinary environment preferred, but at least 2+ years of industry experience is required for Sr. Scientist
- You have a strong PhD and Post-doc publication record demonstrating your expertise in RNA Chemistry.
- Expertise in establishing SHAPE-Map (in vitro and in cell) to determine secondary structure and binding interactions. Experience with related RNA chemical probing techniques such as RNP-MaP are a plus.
- Experience in internalizing and optimizing the latest NGS pipelines for diverse RNA structure probing protocols
- Experience with RNA biochemistry, synthesis, purification, characterization, and structural evaluation with techniques including crystallography, or NMR is strongly preferred
- Experience with other biochemical or biophysical techniques to probe protein/RNA and RNA/SM interactions is desirable
- You have an understanding of protein expression and purification
- You can thrive in a fast-paced start-up environment
- You have excellent communication and interpersonal skills
