Why Patients Need You

Pfizer’s purpose is to deliver breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. Research and Development is at the heart of fulfilling Pfizer’s purpose as we work to translate advanced science and technologies into the therapies and vaccines that matter most. Whether you are in the discovery sciences, ensuring drug safety and efficacy or supporting clinical trials, you will apply cutting edge design and process development capabilities to accelerate and bring the best in class medicines to patients around the world.

ROLE SUMMARY

We have an exciting opportunity to join Pfizer’s Inflammation and Immunology Research Unit located in the heart of Cambridge’s biomedical research hub as a postdoctoral fellow.  The position is with the Leukocyte Tissue Interface Group whose mission is to share immunology expertise across Pfizer’s various research units. The postdoctoral fellow will embark on a research project exploring novel engineering efforts to reprogram leukocytes using lipid-nanoparticle technologies, work collaboratively with diverse research teams within Pfizer, and publish their work in high-impact journals. This position presents a unique opportunity for well-trained immunologists and/or bioengineers who are also interested and passionate about receiving training in drug development.  Your scientific research will give you the opportunity to immerse yourself in a dynamic pharmaceutical industry environment, to work with, learn from, and to influence fellow scientists. The postdoc will gain experience in disease-relevant immunology, cutting-edge RNA sequencing-based cell profiling and in vivo modeling. The ideal candidate should have solid training in immunology and good understanding of RNA sequencing techniques and mRNA engineering.  You will be expected to deliver the results of your novel research internally via various working groups, via external conferences and through publications in quality scientific journals.

ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Demonstrate deep scientific and technical expertise harnessed to advance our understanding of LNP targeting, produce high-impact publications, present at conferences, and ultimately contribute to the delivery of novel, life-changing therapies for patients.

• Contribute intellectually and at the bench to the project conception, design and execution.

• Generate, organize, analyze, interpret data and communicate back to mentor. Identify areas where key knowledge is lacking. Proactively seek new scientific leads via systems immunology, literature, conferences, and key opinion leaders with the goal of refining scientific hypothesis and expediting experimental plans.

• Be a proactive problem solver.  Identifying roadblocks and propose innovative ways to provide solutions.   

• Effectively communicate results at internal and external events and proactively contribute to the continued scientific growth at Pfizer.

• Contribute to a culture that embraces scientific excellence, effectiveness, and teamwork.

• Exercise and build basic team effectiveness skills {e.g., commitment, feedback, consensus management) within context of immediate work group.

• Collaborate and develop deep partnerships with Pfizer’s Next-Generation Sequencing Technology Center.

• Ensure all tasks and responsibilities are carried out according to scientific and ethical standards.

• Present the research work at various internal and external meetings and publish in high-impact journals.

QUALIFICATIONS

Basic Qualifications

• Recent Ph.D., M.D. or M.D./Ph.D. in bioengineering and/or immunology.

• 1-2 first-author publications (published or manuscripts submitted for publication) in high-quality specialty or general readership journals.

• Experience in animal handling and tissue harvesting, dissociation and cell isolation.  

• In vitro culture of primary cells and cell lines.

• Demonstrated experience in diverse molecular and biochemical laboratory techniques applied to cell characterization at molecular or genetic levels (immunofluorescence, flow cytometry, qPCR, RNA sequencing).

• Demonstrated proficiency in basic cell and molecular biology techniques including some of the following: Flow cytometry, ELISA/MSD, RNA/protein isolation from cells & tissues, qRT-PCR, Western blot.

• Basic understanding of statistics and computational biology.

• Well organized, self-motivated, team oriented, ability to multitask with attention to detail.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience isolating and culturing primary human immune cells in vitro.

• Experience transfecting/transducing cells using non-viral/viral methodologies.

• Experience with RNA-seq data analysis.

• Proficient in computational analysis and coding pipelines (R Studio, Python, etc.).

• Excellent written and oral communication skills.

• Self-directed with ability to work independently.

OTHER JOB DETAILS

• Must Have Work Authorization in US

• Eligible for Relocation Assistance

Relocation assistance may be available based on business needs and/or eligibility.