Scientist, Cell Therapy Bioscience

AstraZeneca•Gaithersburg, MD

1d•Onsite

About The Position

This is a predominantly laboratory-based discovery position focused on the in vitro generation, characterization, and functional evaluation of engineered immune-cell therapies. The Scientist will provide hands-on experimental support to CAR-T projects and contribute to Cell Therapy platform capabilities that can be applied across programs. The role combines T- and NK-cell biology, cellular engineering, functional assay development, and multiparameter flow cytometry to address biological and translational questions. The successful candidate will design and execute experiments with increasing independence, analyze and interpret data, and translate findings into conclusions and next steps. The position works within multidisciplinary project teams and collaborates across Cell Therapy, Bioscience, Bioengineering, Computational Biology, and In Vivo Pharmacology. The role also uses fit-for-purpose digital and AI-enabled tools for data organization, analysis, visualization, literature synthesis, and experimental planning while remaining directly engaged in laboratory research. The position is based at AstraZeneca’s Gaithersburg, Maryland campus, a major U.S. R&D and Oncology hub with multidisciplinary scientists, modern laboratories, and cross-functional teams.

Requirements

BS or MS in Immunology, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Bioengineering, or a related scientific discipline, with approximately 3 or more years of relevant research experience.
Hands-on experience with primary human immune-cell culture and established tumor cell lines.
Practical experience in T-cell and/or NK-cell biology, Cell Therapy, Immunology, Immuno-Oncology, or a closely related field.
Experience performing immune-cell functional assays, such as cytotoxicity, proliferation, activation, and cytokine measurements.
Experience with flow cytometry acquisition and analysis, including interpreting data in the context of the biological question.
Ability to contribute to experimental design, troubleshoot laboratory studies, interpret results critically, and identify appropriate next steps.
Strong organization, documentation, and communication skills, with the ability to manage several laboratory activities and deliver reliable data within project timelines.
Ability to work collaboratively in multidisciplinary project teams while maintaining accountability for assigned experimental work.
Comfort using standard data-analysis and visualization software and willingness to adopt approved AI-enabled tools to improve daily scientific analysis and productivity.

Nice To Haves

Experience generating or characterizing CAR-T, TCR-T, engineered NK cells, or other genetically modified immune-cell therapies.
Familiarity with viral transduction, electroporation, CRISPR/Cas, or other gene-editing and cellular-engineering approaches.
Knowledge of allogeneic Cell Therapy and mechanisms of immune rejection, including host-versus-graft and graft-versus-host biology.
Hands-on experience developing or running in vitro allorejection assays, including mixed lymphocyte reactions, immune-cell co-cultures, or related functional assays.
Experience using established bioinformatics, automation, or AI-assisted tools for biological data interpretation, literature review, documentation, or experimental planning.
Previous experience in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology research environment is preferred.

Responsibilities

Conduct, troubleshoot, and independently analyze in vitro Cell Therapy and immunology experiments.
Culture and characterize primary T and NK cells, including phenotyping and functional assays.
Engineer T cells using viral and/or non-viral approaches.
Contribute to Cell Therapy platform development by establishing, optimizing, and applying reusable assays, workflows, controls, and data-analysis approaches across programs.
Design and execute immune-cell functional assays, including activation, cytotoxicity, proliferation, cytokine production, serial or repeated challenge, phenotype, fitness, and persistence readouts.
Plan and perform multiparameter flow cytometry experiments, including panel design, staining, acquisition, quality control, analysis, and biological interpretation.
Apply cellular and molecular methods relevant to CAR-T discovery, including primary-cell isolation and culture, transfection or electroporation, viral transduction, gene-editing support, and molecular characterization.
Support in vitro assessment of allogeneic rejection biology, including host-versus-graft and graft-versus-host responses, using immune-cell co-culture, mixed lymphocyte reaction, or related assays.
Use appropriate statistical, visualization, and reproducible data-handling practices to analyze results, define conclusions, and identify next experiments.
Use approved digital and AI-enabled tools, where appropriate, for data analysis, visualization, literature synthesis, documentation, and experimental planning, with scientific review and protection of confidential information.
Integrate findings across functional assays, flow cytometry, and, where relevant, omics or in vivo datasets in collaboration with computational, bioinformatics, and in vivo partners.
Maintain accurate experimental records and communicate results, interpretations, limitations, and recommendations through reports, presentations, and project discussions.
Collaborate effectively within multidisciplinary project teams and conduct work in accordance with applicable laboratory, data-integrity, biosafety, Safety, Health & Environment, quality, and regulatory requirements.