Associate Scientist

Cytokineticsis a specialty cardiovascular biopharmaceutical company, building on its over 25 years of pioneering scientific innovations in muscle biology, and advancing a pipeline of potential new medicines for patients suffering from diseases of cardiac muscle dysfunction.

At Cytokinetics, each team member plays an integral part in advancing our mission to improve the lives of patients. We are seeking tenacious, compassionate, and collaborative individuals who are driven to make a positive impact.

We are seeking a highly motivated Associate Scientist to support pharmacology efforts across muscle biology programs. The ideal candidate is a proactive and collaborative scientist who thrives in a multidisciplinary environment and contributes meaningfully to the progression of compounds through preclinical research and development.

• Design, execute, and manage in vivo pharmacology studies and downstream biochemical and molecular assays to evaluate the efficacy of small-molecule therapeutics for cardiac indications.

• Lead day-to-day oversight of animal study cohorts, including scheduling, dosing, monitoring, and coordination with vivarium staff, ensuring full compliance with IACUC and institutional guidelines.

• Quantify and interpret biomarkers of disease progression and target engagement, integrating functional and molecular endpoints to assess compound performance.

• Collaborate closely with discovery, DMPK, and translational teams to advance compounds through preclinical development, contributing to study design, data interpretation, and go/no-go decisions.

• Maintain rigorous documentation of experimental methods and results; manage datasets; prepare clear, concise data summaries and presentations for internal project team meetings and program reviews.

• BS in Biology, Physiology, Pharmacology, or a related discipline with 8+ years of hands‑on research experience or MS with 6+ years of experience. Prior experience in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology setting is strongly preferred.

• Demonstrated proficiency in rodent handling and dosing (mouse and rat), including multiple routes of administration is required.

• Experience with cardiac functional assessments (e.g., echocardiography, tail‑cuff blood pressure measurements, or related techniques) is highly desirable.

• Extensive hands‑on experience in biochemical and molecular biology assays, such as Western blotting, qPCR, immunohistochemistry, and enzyme‑based assays.

• Experience with handling mammalian cell culture or primary cardiomyocytes is a plus.

• Ability to analyze, interpret, and clearly communicate complex datasets, both in written reports and oral presentations.

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In the U.S., the hiring pay range for fully qualified candidates is $121,500-$141,750 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors.

Our employees come from different backgrounds, and we celebrate those differences. We are looking for the best candidates for our open roles, but do not expect applicants to meet every qualification in order to be considered. If you are excited about what you could accomplish at Cytokinetics and believe you can add value to our team, we would love to hear from you.

Please review our General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) policy PRIOR to applying.

Our passion is anchored in robust scientific thinking, grounded in integrity and critical thinking. We keep the patient front and center in all we do – all actions and decisions are in service of the patient and their caregivers. We champion integrity, ethics, doing the right thing, and being our best selves.

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Cytokinetics is an Equal Opportunity Employer