Research Associate, Molecular and Cell Biology

Biohub is leading the new era of AI-powered biology to cure or prevent disease through its 501c3 medical research organization, with the support of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.

The Team

The Biohub in San Francisco is an independent nonprofit research institute that brings together three powerhouse universities - Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UC San Francisco - into a single collaborative technology and discovery engine. Biohub itself supports some of the brightest, boldest engineers, data scientists, and biomedical researchers to investigate the fundamental mechanisms underlying disease and develop new technologies that will lead to actionable diagnostics and effective therapies. We are guided by our values of scholarly excellence; disruptive innovation; hands-on engineering/hacking/building; partnership and collaboration; open communication and respect; inclusiveness; and opportunity for all.

Our Vision

• We pursue large scientific challenges that cannot be pursued in conventional environments
• We enable individual investigators to pursue their riskiest and most innovative ideas
• The technologies developed at Biohub facilitate research by scientists and clinicians at our home institutions and beyond

Diversity of thought, ideas, and perspectives are at the heart of Biohub and enable disruptive innovation and scholarly excellence. We are committed to cultivating an organization where all colleagues feel inspired and know their work makes an important contribution.

The Opportunity

Part of Imaging Grand Challenge, The CELLxSTATE Program builds next-generation technologies to decode and control how cells make decisions — combining live-cell imaging, multi-omics, and AI at unprecedented scale.  We also create large reference datasets that can be mined and re-used by the entire community for discovery, like our OpenCell project that maps protein localization and interactions (https://opencell.czbiohub.org/). Our science is fully open-source and published in journals like Science, Nature Methods, and Cell (https://biohub.org/leonetti/publications/).

At the core of our current efforts is multiDPS (Multimodal Dynamic Pooled Screening), a high-throughput platform that integrates custom microscopy, automation, CRISPR screening and molecular profiling to map and predict dynamic cell states.

We are seeking a Research Associate, Molecular and Cell Biology to help build a state-of-the-art imaging screening platform that will be applied to cell-based disease models. This is a great opportunity for candidates with a strong interest in cell biology and biotechnology, supported by experts in a highly collaborative and well-funded scientific environment. Recent graduates interested in research experience before applying to graduate or medical school are welcome to apply.

What You'll Do

• Perform cell engineering and maintenance of mammalian cell lines, including iPSCs and differentiated derivatives, including routine passaging, genetic modifications, and quality control.
• Apply basic molecular biology techniques such as PCR, plasmid cloning, and DNA/RNA preparation to support cell engineering and molecular assays.
• Execute live-cell and fixed-cell imaging experiments, with a focus on high-content imaging approaches to generate large-scale, quantitative datasets.
• Manipulate cellular function using chemical and CRISPR-based perturbations.
• Maintain detailed, organized experimental records. 
• Analyze experimental data using Python, ImageJ, and Napari.
• Contribute to publications through data generation, figure preparation, and methods documentation, with authorship opportunities.

What You'll Bring

Essential

• B.Sc. in Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Bioengineering or a related discipline
• At least 1 year of cell biology experience in an academic or industrial research laboratory setting 
• At least 1 year of tissue culture experience (including iPSCs preferred) 
• At least 1 year of microscopy experience
• At least 1 year of molecular biology techniques (e.g., PCR, cloning)
• Strong attention to detail in maintaining lab notebooks
• Passion for research and learning new techniques
• An enthusiasm for team science and open science - this position will be embedded in a large multi-disciplinary team
• Excellent written and oral communication skills

Nice to have 

• Experience with CRISPR methods
• Experience with coding (Python, R, Matlab, etc.)

Compensation

The San Francisco, CA base pay range for a new hire in this role is $79,000 - $98,000. New hires are typically hired into the lower portion of the range, enabling employee growth in the range over time. Actual placement in range is based on job-related skills and experience, as evaluated throughout the interview process. 

Benefits for the Whole You 

We’re thankful to have an incredible team behind our work. To honor their commitment, we offer a wide range of benefits to support the people who make all we do possible. 

• Provides a generous employer match on employee 401(k) contributions to support planning for the future.
• Paid time off to volunteer at an organization of your choice. 
• Funding for select family-forming benefits. 
• Relocation support for employees who need assistance moving

If you’re interested in a role but your previous experience doesn’t perfectly align with each qualification in the job description, we still encourage you to apply as you may be the perfect fit for this or another role.

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