Senior Research Associate – Strain and Enzyme Engineering

Research Associate / Senior Research Associate – Strain and Enzyme Engineering-Waltham, MA

Manus works across industries and value chains to accelerate the transition to BioAlternatives – better performing and more sustainable versions of complex molecules traditionally sourced from plants, animals, or fossil fuels. Our platform is proven to work across scales, bridging the Valley of Death between lab and manufacturing more efficiently and more reliably to deliver the benefits of biotechnology today.

Manus is seeking a Research Associate (RA) or Senior Research Associate (SRA) to support strain engineering and analytics workflows within our project pipeline. In this role, you will design and construct plasmids, generate chromosomally integrated Escherichia coli (E. coli) strains, culture and screen engineered strains, and process the resulting analytical data (liquid extraction, Gas Chromatography (GC) and/or Liquid Chromatography (LC)) to identify strains with enhanced performance. This role focuses on execution of defined engineering campaigns to drive meaningful improvements in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment.

This hands-on position requires a desire and ability to work as an integral part of a multidisciplinary team, as well as the demonstration of a high degree of flexibility, creativity, and initiative. This person will be expected to play an integral part of Manus’s research and development team located in Waltham, Massachusetts (MA).

Responsibilities

Molecular biology: Design, construct, and validate plasmids for gene expression and pathway engineering in microbial hosts.

Strain construction: Generate chromosomally integrated E. coli strains (e.g., via recombineering or CRISPR-based methods) to support strain engineering campaigns.

Strain cultivation: Culture and maintain engineered E. coli strains in solid and liquid formats at lab scale.

Sample preparation: Perform liquid-liquid or solid-phase extraction of fermentation broth and other sample matrices to prepare samples for analytical testing.

Analytical execution: Operate GC and/or LC instrumentation to generate quantitative data on strain performance (e.g., titer, yield, product profile).

Data analysis: Process, QC, and interpret analytical and strain-performance data; summarize and present findings to the project team.

Data management: Ensure accurate data collection, processing, and upload to LIMS systems.

Collaboration: Collaborate with cross-functional teams (molecular biology, fermentation, downstream processing) to improve experimental outcomes.

Lab operations: Maintain instrumentation readiness and general lab organization.

Documentation: Author and update SOPs and experimental documentation.

Basic Qualifications

• Research Associate: Bachelor’s degree with 0–4 years’ relevant experience.
• Senior Research Associate: Bachelors with 4–7 years’ or master’s with 2–4 years’ relevant experience.
• Degree in molecular biology, biochemistry, microbiology, chemistry, bioengineering, or a related field (field of degree is flexible; relevant hands-on experience is prioritized).
• Hands-on experience with plasmid design and cloning (e.g., Gibson assembly, Golden Gate, restriction/ligation).
• Experience culturing and screening engineered microbial strains in liquid and/or solid formats.

Preferred Skills

• Direct experience generating chromosomal integrations in E. coli specifically (e.g., lambda Red recombineering, CRISPR-based integration).
• Experience with LIMS systems (e.g., Benchling).
• Data analysis and visualization experience (e.g., JMP, Python, SQL).
• Familiarity with GC-MS or LC/MS (mass-selective detection) in addition to GC-FID or standard LC/UV-Vis workflows.
• Experience with sample extraction (liquid-liquid or solid-phase) from biological or fermentation matrices.
• Experience with automated liquid-handling systems.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to work in industrial environments.
• May require standing, walking, climbing stairs, and lifting equipment up to 50 lbs.
• Use of PPE required in designated areas.