Scientist - Neuroscience & Immunology

Work Your Magic with us! Start your next chapter and join EMD Serono.

Ready to explore, break barriers, and discover more? We know you’ve got big plans – so do we! Our colleagues across the globe love innovating with science and technology to enrich people’s lives with our solutions in Healthcare, Life Science, and Electronics. Together, we dream big and are passionate about caring for our rich mix of people, customers, patients, and planet.

That's why we are always looking for curious minds that see themselves imagining the unimaginable with us.

United As One for Patients, our purpose in Healthcare is to help create, improve and prolong lives. We develop medicines, intelligent devices and innovative technologies in therapeutic areas such as Oncology, Neurology and Fertility. Our teams work together across 6 continents with passion and relentless curiosity in order to help patients at every stage of life. Joining our Healthcare team is becoming part of a diverse, inclusive and flexible working culture, presenting great opportunities for personal development and career advancement across the globe.

This role does not offer sponsorship for work authorization. External applicants must be eligible to work in the US.

EMD Serono in Billerica, MA is seeking a Scientist to join the Discovery Biology group in Research Unit Neuroscience & Immunology (RU-N&I) team at our state‑of‑the‑art research facility. The Scientist will contribute to the discovery of drugs for neurodegenerative/neuroinflammatory and autoimmune diseases. You will work collaboratively with an international team of scientists to develop novel therapeutics that align with the Neurology & Immunology portfolio.

You will be responsible for the execution of in vitro cell‑based assays that will further our mechanistic understanding of diseases and evaluate potential drug candidates.

• Plan, execute, and lead in vitro studies using human iPSC‑derived cell types, or cell lines to support target validation and drug candidate evaluation efforts.
• Conduct translational biomarker discovery using patient samples or disease‑relevant cell‑based assays to support pharmacodynamics and target engagement biomarker discovery.
• Operate a variety of laboratory equipment, including microscopes/automated imagers, flow cytometers, qPCR machines, and spectrophotometers.
• Record data accurately in the Electronic Laboratory Notebook and maintain records per company policy and legal requirements.
• Prepare data reports and presentations to lab heads, project teams, and at external meetings.
• Independently design, execute, analyze, interpret, and troubleshoot experiments to support pipeline progression.
• Provide technical support to colleagues in own area of expertise when necessary.
• Work closely with members in RU-N&I to support departmental goals.

• Master’s degree in Biology, Neurobiology, Immunology or other Science discipline with 2+ years of laboratory experience in Academia, Pharma, Biotech or CRO.
• OR PhD in Biology, Neurobiology, Immunology, or other Science discipline with 1+ years of laboratory experience in Academia, Pharma, Biotech or CRO.

• Demonstrated experience with human iPSC‑derived neural disease models.
• Knowledge and hands‑on experience in the following areas:
  • Maintaining mammalian cell culture:
    • Primary neurons or glia
    • Co‑culture and triculture systems
    • PBMCs
  • Transfection of cells to introduce siRNAs, ASO, or CRISPR‑based gene editing tools to suppress or knockout specific genes.
  • Live‑cell imaging and imaging analysis experience using an Incucyte or similar automated imager.
  • Immunocytochemistry and/or RNAscope.
  • Gene expression and protein analyses: DNA/RNA isolation, qPCR platforms (Applied biosystems Quant Studio, Nanostring, etc.), western blotting (Sally Sue, Wes).
  • Bioanalytical assays:
    Alpha
    
    LISA, Meso Scale Discovery (MSD).
• Pharmaceutical industry/Drug discovery experience.
• Experience on a pipeline project team.
• Proficient with research analytical software:
  Graph Pad Prism, Microsoft Office, FIJI (or other image analysis software), Quant Studio.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently in a…