Investigative Toxicology Lab Lead

Investigative Toxicology Lab Lead

UCB - Union Chimique Belge

Braine l'Alleud, Belgium

We are looking for a Senior Scientist Investigative Toxicology to join us in our organization based in Braine-l’Alleud, Belgium.

About the role:

• You will collaborate with project leaders to implement scientific technologies with minimal supervision to enhance productivity and efficiency within the Non-Clinical Safety function;
• You will develop and/or implement novel assays based on organ-on-chip for in vitro toxicity/safety assessment;
• You will design and execute predictive in vitro toxicity assays to support discovery and early development programs;
• You will coordinate the analysis, interpretation, reporting, and archiving of data acquired;
• You will be in charge of training of junior laboratory staff.

The position is based in the UCB laboratories and offices at the Braine-l’Alleud campus.

What you will do:

• You will develop, optimize, and implement physiologically relevant organ-on-chip in vitro models, including providing technical expertise, design and execute qualification plans, and establish relevant endpoint assays to dissect the molecular mechanisms of toxicity;
• You will focus on understanding the impact of UCB compounds on target organs toxicities according to the target organ strategies;
• You will conduct in vitro experiments to identify potential liabilities in pre-clinical drug development;
• You will design of experimental set-up, sample organization and preparation, data processing and analysis, reporting of the results;
• You will ensure translation of strategy into hands-on lab work;
• You will coach team members and help them with experimental setups ensuring adequate reporting of data and results;
• You will guarantee proper experiment planning and execution, providing technical support when necessary;
• You will communicate effectively and provide regular updates to team meetings to achieve high transparency, quality and traceability;
• You will participate in the drafting of SOPs in order to be compliant with internal guidelines;
• You will ensure correct and accurate documentation during operations, recording all experimental data and test results accurately and in the specified format;
• You will establish, verify, validate and implement procedures and technical protocols;
• You will independently review the literature to generate hypotheses for experimental testing. Design and coordinate the execution, analysis, and interpretation of relevant experiments to test hypotheses;
• You will connect with CROs on outsourcing activities to optimize output regarding time, cost and quality;
• You will connect to the outside community via consortia, collaborations, joint projects, chaired sessions, contribution to conferences and publications;
• You will maintain current awareness of technology and theoretical development in the fields relevant to in vitro toxicology.

Ensure that activities are conducted in ethical and safe manner according to the UCB code of conduct.

For this position you’ll need the following education, experience and skills:

• You have a PhD with at least 2 years post-doc experience;
• You have demonstrated expertise in microphysiological systems/organ-on-chip approaches with particular focus on characterizing toxico-pharmacological effect;
• You have experience in working with a variety of in vitro cell model systems including primary cultures and iPSC-derived cells;
• You have a profound interest in the execution of laboratory-based activities;
• You have expertise in mammalian cell culture (primary, iPSC), imaging, molecular biology (RNA, DNA, protein) and biochemical endpoints (ELISA, MSD, qPCR, Capillary electrophoresis-based immuno-assay, Western Blot);
• You have some good interpersonal skills to communicate and maintain good working relationships within the team and with internal/external collaborators;
• You have the ability to work independently in the experimental design and execution, data analysis, data interpretation and communication;
• You have a high level of motivation, initiative, autonomy, flexibility with a result-oriented & problem-solving mindset;
• You have excellent organizational and record keeping skills, capable of independently managing multiple projects in a fast-paced environment;
• You have strong written communication skills for presenting and articulating experimental findings and conclusions to project teams and general audiences.

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Belgium      Biotechnology and Genetics      Pre-clinical Research and Development      UCB - Union Chimique Belge