Senior Scientist II, Peptide Discovery

Company Description

Abb Vie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas – immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about Abb Vie, please visit us at  Follow @abbvie on X, Facebook, Instagram, You Tube, Linked In and Tik Tok.

Abb Vie is seeking a Senior Scientist II with a strong background in immunology and/or peptide biology to join our Immuno-Pharmacology and Peptide Discovery team within the Immunology Discovery organization. In this role, you will conceive and implement innovative research strategies to advance immunology programs focused on peptide therapeutics, supporting both early discovery and IND-enabling phases. You will drive innovation by developing new scientific proposals and leading exploratory research initiatives aligned with program and departmental objectives.

Your responsibilities include investigating, identifying, and optimizing advanced technical methods and scientific approaches to accelerate peptide-based therapeutic development. As a lead scientist and subject matter expert, you will provide critical insights to help define program direction and resolve complex scientific challenges. You will also proactively assess emerging scientific and regulatory trends, integrating new knowledge into experimental strategies to ensure state-of-the-art practices and regulatory compliance.

Extensive collaboration with cross-functional teams—including in vivo teams, DMPK, platform technology, and disease area groups—will enable cohesive program advancement and effective translation of research findings. The position offers the opportunity to provide strong technical execution, leadership, and mentorship within the team, with potential to take on people leadership responsibilities as the group continues to grow.

Responsibilities:

• Innovative assay development and optimization: Independently design and execute immunological assays (e.g., ligand-receptor interaction, multi-color flow cytometry, potency whole blood, PBMC & cell line assays, co-culture systems, ELISPOT, ELISA/MSD, ddPCR, RNA-seq, HTS, etc.) to evaluate peptide therapeutics, uncover mechanisms of action in immune pathways. Ensure assay robustness, sensitivity, and reproducibility across programs for reliable data-driven decision-making.
• PK/PD Relationship: Apply analytical techniques, including multi-color flow cytometry for detailed cell signaling and phenotype analysis and molecular assays (digital PCR, qPCR, RNA extraction and sequencing) to quantify biomarkers and gene expression changes to build a PK/PD relationship.
• Data analysis & interpretation: Analyze and interpret complex experimental datasets to derive meaningful insights on peptide candidate efficacy and mechanism of action and adjust research directions based on data trends and scientific rationale.
• Experimental execution & quality: Lead hands-on laboratory studies and complex cellular assays with exceptional attention to detail, generating high-quality, reproducible data while maintaining rigorous documentation and data integrity standards.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Work closely with cross-functional teams (e.g., DMPK, in vivo pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, and platform technology groups) to integrate pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, and efficacy data, aligning experimental plans with overall program objectives and timelines.
• Scientific communication: Prepare and deliver clear, concise technical reports and presentations on research findings, and contribute to external scientific communications (conference presentations, peer-reviewed publications) to highlight the team’s peptide immunology advancements.
• IND-enabling support: Contribute to IND-enabling efforts by designing critical preclinical studies, compiling and QC-reviewing data for regulatory documents, and supporting the authoring of IND submission sections to facilitate smooth…