Associate Director, Pharmacology & Bioassays

Associate Director, Pharmacology & Bioassays

Absci is a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing novel therapeutics using generative AI. Our Integrated Drug Creation™ platform combines cutting‑edge AI models with a synthetic biology data engine, enabling rapid design of innovative therapeutics that address challenging targets.

Absci is headquartered in Vancouver, WA, with offices in New York City, Switzerland, and Serbia. Learn more at  or follow us on Linked In (@absci), X (@Abscibio), and You Tube.

Absci is seeking a visionary scientific leader to serve as Associate Director, Pharmacology & Bioassays. In this pivotal role, you will lead a multidisciplinary team driving in‑vitro and ex‑vivo functional characterization of next‑generation biologics—including antibodies, bispecifics, and engineered binding proteins—to advance Absci’s discovery and preclinical pipeline. You will be the group’s primary subject‑matter expert in pharmacology, mechanistic biology, and functional assay strategy, ensuring data are rigorous, reproducible, and inform program strategy from early discovery through IND‑enabling studies.

This leadership role reports to the Head of Disease Biology and partners closely with Disease Biology, Protein Engineering, and High‑Throughput Screening (HTS) functions.

• Lead, mentor, and develop a high‑performing team focused on in‑vitro and ex‑vivo assay development, mechanistic biology, and functional pharmacology.
• Serve as the primary pharmacology SME on internal project teams.
• Provide scientific direction on assay strategies and mechanistic understanding of biologic therapeutics, including MOA, receptor pharmacology, signaling pathways, and functional readouts.
• Uphold strong scientific rigor, reproducibility, data quality, and interpretation standards across all team deliverables.

• Oversee the design, development, optimization, and execution of cell‑based functional assays evaluating potency, mechanistic activity, selectivity, and biological relevance of Absci’s therapeutic candidates.
• Target validation and MOA elucidation.
• Lead identification and optimization.
• Structure–function and functional epitope analysis.
• Cell biology studies relevant to disease‑associated pathways.
• Represent the Pharmacology & Bioassays group on cross‑functional project teams, translate complex data into actionable recommendations and articulate program risks.
• Collaborate closely with Protein Engineering, HTS, and Disease Biology to drive cohesive, milestone‑aligned experimental plans.
• Identify data gaps, propose scientifically sound solutions, and guide planning to ensure programs remain on track with the right assays and decision‑making metrics.
• Support in vivo study design by developing complementary in‑vitro/ex‑vivo assays to inform MOA, PD biomarkers, and dose selection.

• Build and maintain state‑of‑the‑art workflows and technologies for cell‑based and ex‑vivo assay systems (e.g., primary cell systems, cytokine/receptor signaling assays, flow cytometry, high‑content imaging).
• Implement best practices for assay robustness, statistical rigor, documentation, and reproducibility.
• Manage team resources, timelines, and workload across multiple programs in a dynamic, fast‑paced environment.
• Evaluate and oversee external collaborations, including CROs and academic groups, as needed.

• PhD in Pharmacology, Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Immunology, or a related discipline with 5‑7+ years of industry experience, or an equivalent combination of advanced degree and experience.
• Demonstrated track record of scientific leadership and team development.
• Proven experience supporting or leading antibody drug development programs.

• Deep expertise in pharmacology and mechanistic biology of biologics, including antibodies, bispecifics, and other engineered protein therapeutics.
• Strong background in cell biology, including primary cell systems, cytokine biology, receptor–ligand interactions, signaling pathways, and effector function mechanisms.
• Extensive experience developing, executing, and…