Senior Scientist II, Recombinant Peptide Process Development
About The Position
AbbVie’s Biologics CMC organization develops processes to support the advancement and manufacture of biologic medicines. The Senior Scientist II will lead development of microbial-based recombinant peptide production processes and provide technical leadership across expression-system and strain development, fermentation, recovery, purification, and scale-up. The role focuses on developing practical strategies to address challenges in recombinant production of short peptides, including intracellular degradation, low expression, aggregation, and limited solubility, and advancing robust, scalable processes for therapeutic peptide production. When aligned with program needs, the scientist may evaluate and apply genetic code expansion strategies for site-specific incorporation of non-canonical amino acids. The position collaborates with cross-functional partners and contributes to process development, technology evaluation, and technology transfer. The scientist will communicate plans, progress, challenges, conclusions, and recommendations; mentor junior scientists; and contribute to publications and conference presentations as appropriate. The role also requires managing priorities and timelines while following corporate standards for safety, quality, and compliance.
Requirements
- PhD with typically 4+ years of relevant experience; master’s degree or equivalent education with 10+ years of relevant experience; or bachelor’s degree or equivalent education with typically 12+ years of relevant experience.
- Thorough theoretical and practical understanding of relevant scientific disciplines, with hands-on experience in microbial physiology and recombinant expression systems, particularly E. coli and/or yeast.
- Ability to independently design, execute, and interpret critical experiments to address scientific or development questions.
- Experience developing or optimizing expression processes for peptides, small proteins, or other products susceptible to degradation or instability.
- Experience with strain or clone screening, fermentation, and process optimization; familiarity with bioreactors and scale-down or parallel cultivation approaches.
- Demonstrated experience with preparative chromatography and peptide or protein purification, as well as peptide recovery and fusion-partner cleavage strategies.
- Strong experimental design, data interpretation, troubleshooting, scientific writing, and oral communication skills.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities and timelines and work effectively in a matrixed, cross-functional environment.
Nice To Haves
- Experience developing or manufacturing complex therapeutic peptides, particularly GLP-1 or related incretin peptides, in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology company or start-up environment.
- Experience applying genetic code expansion to incorporate non-canonical amino acids at defined positions using engineered orthogonal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA pairs and codon reassignment.
Responsibilities
- Lead recombinant peptide process-development activities, including expression strategy, host and clone screening, process optimization, and scale-up.
- Design and evaluate expression constructs and microbial hosts, including Escherichia coli and yeast, for peptide production.
- Develop and assess fusion-tag and carrier-protein strategies, including His-tag, GST, SUMO, and inclusion-body expression, to improve peptide stability, expression, host tolerance, and recovery.
- Design and conduct clone-screening studies using microscale cultivation, parallel bioreactors, and other appropriate scale-down or high-throughput approaches.
- Develop and optimize peptide recovery processes, including cell harvest and lysis, inclusion-body isolation and processing, and chemical or enzymatic cleavage of fusion partners.
- Troubleshoot peptide-specific process challenges, such as aggregation, low solubility, degradation, incomplete cleavage, and co-eluting impurities; recommend and pursue appropriate solutions.
- Interpret HPLC, UPLC, and LC-MS analytical results to assess peptide identity, mass accuracy, purity, and process-related impurities, and partner with analytical teams on characterization needs.
- Evaluate emerging technologies and process approaches for recombinant peptide production, including genetic code expansion when relevant to program needs.
- Apply AI/ML approaches, where appropriate, to analyze peptide sequence, structure, and experimental data in support of design, optimization, and candidate prioritization.
- Communicate scientific plans, progress, challenges, conclusions, and recommendations clearly to project teams and other stakeholders.
- Mentor junior scientists and provide technical direction in recombinant peptide bioprocessing.
- Contribute to scientific publications and conference presentations, as appropriate.
- Maintain a high level of productivity while managing priorities and timelines; follow applicable corporate standards for safety, quality, and compliance.
Benefits
- Paid time off, including vacation, holidays, and sick time.
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance for eligible employees.
- 401(k) for eligible employees.
- Eligibility to participate in long-term incentive programs.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
