Sania Therapeutics is hiring a bioinformatician to accelerate our development of novel therapies for neurological disorders
Location | Waterfront Building, Hammersmith, London, W6 9RH with the potential for remote or hybrid working
Application reference | SRX-RS2
Application closing date | 28th February 2023
Contact | careers@saniarx.com (applications must include a cover letter and CV)
Contract type | 0.4 FTE, permanent
Start date | ASAP
BACKGROUND
Sania Therapeutics (‘Sania’) is an innovative new biotechnology company aiming to revolutionise the treatment of neurological diseases through the development of the next generation of nervous system therapies. Sania’s therapies will treat neurological disorders by correcting abnormal electrical activity of neural circuits via a combination of engineered adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors and chemogenetics.
We utilise proprietary technology platforms to develop synthetic vectors to precisely target and modulate neural circuits. These platforms deliver:
Targeted gene delivery via AAV capsid modification;
Selective gene expression through engineered promotors, and;
Precise modulation of neuronal activity via expression of synthetic ion channels.
Sania is initially focused on developing treatments for neuromuscular and neuromotor diseases with the plan to expand into further indications in the near future.
Sania is located in a new purpose-build laboratory in Hammersmith, London, UK.
Our team is made up of academic and industry experts in medicine, neuroscience, electrophysiology and virus engineering and we are looking to expand our talent.
WHY SANIA?
Sania is an equal opportunities employer – we are enriched by our diversity and are committed to creating and sustaining an inclusive and equitable environment for all. We are a values-led enterprise, and our talented employees are our cornerstone. Sania is built on their collective dedication, passion, and enthusiasm.
We strive to create an environment where our team feel empowered to be their best selves, and where they enjoy working and building both the therapies and our company with us. We offer internal and external developmental opportunities to support their growth. Our employees also receive a competitive salary, private health insurance, dental and optical care, subsidised gym membership, and the opportunity to participate in our share option scheme.
Informal enquiries about the position can be sent to careers@saniarx.com. Please reference the position number SRX-RS2 in the subject line.
JOB DESCRIPTION
The successful candidate will become part of a close-knit team who are using a combination of synthetic biology, molecular biology, and electrophysiology for the development of new therapeutics. The new hire will be specifically responsible for designing and implementing bioinformatics tools, data analysis infrastructure and scalable pipelines for analysing sequencing data to aid the identification of novel AAV capsid and promoter candidates. The successful candidate will be expected to contribute to team meetings where they will receive feedback from other members of the Sania team.
To be considered, candidates must have a passion for making a difference in the lives of patients and be motivated to pursue genetic discovery. The ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate experience and competence in some or all the duties described below:
- Understanding of AAV biology and directed evolution approaches
- Understanding of genome sequencing technologies (Illumina, Oxford Nanopore, PacBio etc.), the data they generate and biases they can introduce
- Write, maintain and optimise bioinformatics scripts, software, workflows and pipelines
- Ability to interpret and write bioinformatics and statistical reports and data, and create custom bioinformatic tools
- An understanding of genetics, next-generation sequencing technology and data formats and working with whole genome sequencing data at scale;
- Proven track record in programming using Python to run scripts on the command line and performs troubleshooting to fix code when errors occur;
- Excellent communication skills including in explaining computations data in lay terms, and;
- Exceptional team working skills and ability to work with diverse personalities and skill sets.
Qualifications and desirable skills and experience include:
- PhD or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Bioinformatics, Genetics or a related field; or equivalent industrial or other work experience;
- A track record utilising a variety of statistical approaches to analyse data, with Machine Learning / Deep Learning experience an advantage;
- Processing large biological data sets, and;
Experience in drug development or in an industry setting.
Reach out if you are curious, committed and collaborative, are interested in developing the next generation of therapies for precision neuromodulation, and believe you would be a good fit for this role.
Please send your cover letter and your CV to careers@saniarx.com. The cover letter should tell us what excites you about this role and specify how your experience suits the points listed above. Please include the reference number SRX-RS2 in the subject line of your email.
Please note, candidates who do not include a cover letter with their CV will not be considered.
This application closes at midnight 28th February 2023.