Job Description

We come from many countries, cultures, races, ethnicities, abilities and nationalities. We bring our passions including singing, biking, swimming, dancing, cooking, volunteering, parenting, coaching and much more! We are proud of our nearly equal balance of men and women and strengthened by our non-binary and transgender team members. Every employee belongs.

We offer challenging career opportunities, competitive benefits and an environment that recognizes and rewards performance.

Company Description

Zymeworks is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation bispecific and multifunctional biotherapeutics, initially focused on the treatment of cancer. Zymeworks' suite of complementary therapeutic platforms and its fully-integrated drug development engine provide the flexibility and compatibility to precisely engineer and develop highly-differentiated product candidates.

Zymeworks is seeking a motivated Research Associate II to join the Antibody Discovery and Engineering group (ADE) within the ADC Therapeutic Development department. The ADE group is responsible for the discovery of therapeutic antibodies against tumor-associated antigens for the treatment of cancer, encompassing antibody generation, humanization, formatting and functional characterization, as initial stage on a path towards generating Antibody Drug Conjugate (ADC) therapeutic. The successful candidate will be responsible for supporting pipeline program advancement and contributing to core platform technologies. The successful candidate will be part of a dynamic and motivated team with an opportunity for growth and learning of various drug development stages. This position will be based in our laboratory in Vancouver, BC.

This position will report to the Senior Research Associate, Antibody Discovery and Engineering.

As a condition of employment, Zymeworks requires all employees to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and provide verification of such. To be considered fully vaccinated, all 3 doses are required.

Key Responsibilities

• Executes experiments as per project objectives, with an emphasis on antibody discovery and functional assessment.
• Carries out complex in vitro experiments using advanced techniques.
• Support mammalian tissue culture, maintaining numerous tumor cell lines using sterile technique. Works with team to ensure cell lines are properly expanded, cryopreserved, and databases updated as required.
• Qualify antigen and perform sera titering to support immunization campaigns.
• Performs high throughput antibody characterization using Octet antibody quantification, flow cytometry (cell or bead based), ELISA, and cytotoxicity assays.
• Performs various molecular biology techniques (PCR, cloning, plasmid preparation & purification, etc.) to support antibody discovery platform.
• Perform and optimize high throughput assays using automation (liquid handlers).
• Perform FACS to interrogate immune repertoires.
• Generates high quality, reproducible data to assist in the selection of lead therapeutic molecules and for elucidation/validation of targets for therapeutic development.
• Analyzes, interprets and presents data.
• Keeps up with ongoing projects through attention to internally generated data.
• May assist in preparation of patent applications, research reports and/or scientific papers.
• Assists in maintaining a clean, organized and operational lab.
• Conducts all activities in accordance with scientific standards, OH&S regulations and established policies and practices.
• Adheres to standard procedures for generating, documenting and archiving data. An accurate, up to date lab notebook or electronic notebook is mandatory.
• Fosters effective and collaborative working relationships with fellow employees and management.

Qualifications and Education

• BSc with 2-3 years' related experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Skills and Abilities

• Proven interpersonal skills with the ability to work collaboratively as a member of a cross-functional team. Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.
• Good organizational skills and the ability to work effectively in a high paced, fast changing environment while balancing multiple activities. Results-oriented individual.
• Ability to contribute to the development of new methodologies to address scientific questions.
• Critical observation skills and good statistical analysis capability.
• Good oral, presentation, and scientific/technical writing skills.
• MS Office proficiency.
• Good knowledge and experience in performing lab techniques and methods which may include, but not limited to
• cell-based techniques such as tissue culture, cell transfections, flow cytometry and FACS
• high throughput antibody characterization screening
• biochemical and molecular biology techniques, such as ELISA, PCR and cloning
• Good understanding and experience in the use of standard or specialized lab equipment which may include:
• Nucleic acid and protein gel apparatus
• Thermocyclers
• Flow cytometer analyzers and sorters
• Multimode microplate readers
• Fluorescent and/or confocal microscopes
• High content imaging devices
• Octet or Biacore systems
• High-throughput liquid handlers, plate washers, multidrops

NOTE TO EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES: Zymeworks values our relationships with our Recruitment Partners. We will only accept resumes from those partners whom have been contracted by a member of our Human Resources team to collaborate with us. Zymeworks is not responsible for any fees related to resumes that are unsolicited or are received without contract.