CON-Research Associate

Introduction:

Xencor is a public, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company located in the Los Angeles area (Pasadena) and in San Diego. Our focus is developing high-potential XmAb® bispecific T-cell engagers and additional engineered drug candidates that leverage our differentiated technology platforms, and we are advancing our pipeline toward clinical proof-of-concept decisions. Our goal is to create high-impact therapeutics for patients with cancer and other serious diseases.

More than 20 XmAb drug candidates engineered with our technology are in clinical development, and three XmAb medicines have been marketed by partners. For more information, please visit  We have an excellent opportunity for a contract Research Associate 1 for the molecular biology group to join our team.

This position is based in our Pasadena, CA site and is fully onsite.

Responsible for contributing to daily laboratory operations in support of the identification of and development therapeutic antibody candidates using specialized methods specific to the assigned group, function or department.

• Perform molecular biology workflows, including molecular cloning (subcloning, site-directed mutagenesis, and Gibson Assembly), primer design, bacterial transformation, plasmid DNA preparation, linear expression cassette generation, and PCR/qPCR optimization and troubleshooting.
• Perform plasmid and construct sequence confirmation using Sanger sequencing and next-generation sequencing (NGS), including basic sequence review and analysis with tools such as Se quencher and Geneious.
• Utilize laboratory automation and liquid-handling platforms, such as QIAcube, King Fisher, and VIAFLO, to support routine molecular biology workflows.
• Support efforts to implement, execute and document studies focused on identifying therapeutic antibody and protein candidates in the areas of oncology, inflammation and autoimmune disease
• Contributes to research team efforts by designing and running experiments, analyzing results, and interpreting data
• Documents experimental protocols, designs, and results in a laboratory notebook
• Conducts, and troubleshoots various experiments in support of research
• Execute standard operating procedures
• Maintains laboratory inventory, equipment and related supplies
• Utilizes computer programs to collect, analyze and record data
• Analyzes and reports data in adherence of established timelines
• Communicates data to team members as applicable
• May contribute to developing SOPs and presentations
• May present data in departmental meetings
• Follows all laboratory safety guidelines, practices and protocols
• Coordinates and collaborates on research-related tasks across multiple groups
• Adheres to all department and company-wide policies regarding conduct, performance and procedures
• Performs other duties as required.

Position minimally requires a High School diploma or GED with at least 4 years related laboratory work in an academic or industry setting. A Bachelor’s degree in biological sciences, cell biology, immunology or a related field with at least 1 year of related laboratory work experience is preferred. Industry experience preferred.

• Ability to adapt to changing priorities
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Ability to work well in a team and independently
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, goal-oriented multi-project environment
• Ability to understand and follow instructions from supervisors or other team members
• Detail oriented, good documentation practice and strong organizational skills; can follow protocols and maintain detailed records and inventory
• Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) and ability to use job…