Application Scientist – Ethica

About the Role

We are seeking a highly motivated Tissue Engineering Scientist with significant hands-on experience in generating and maturing 3D engineered skeletal muscle bundles. Ideally, the candidate will also have experience in working with engineered cardiac tissues. Previous experience in assay development within a pharmaceutical environment is a plus.

In this role, you will design and execute experiments that improve tissue maturation, reproducibility and functionality. You will collaborate closely with interdisciplinary teams across biology, biomaterials, microfabrication, assay development and data analysis to advance robust 3D skeletal muscle models and support translational applications with our customers.

About us:

Sophion Bioscience is an innovative, rapidly expanding company founded in 2000, that developed from a startup into a global organization. Sophion Bioscience specializes in developing and manufacturing automated patch clamp systems, organ-on-a-chip platforms and cell line solutions. With our complete technical, biological, and application support, we help our partners pioneer ion channel research and drug discovery by providing faster, more accurate, and objective results. Through the continued development of our platforms, we offer uncompromised data quality in a user-friendly environment, from assay setup to advanced data analysis. Best of all Sophion Bioscience is a fun, fulfilling and collaborative place to work.

We are headquartered in Denmark and have subsidiaries in the United States, Japan and China.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop and optimize 3D engineered skeletal muscle tissue models, both wild type and diseased, develop protocols for formation, maturation and long-term culture suitable for drug development studies.
• Lead experiment workflows including primary and iPSC derived muscle cells and develop tissue quality parameters.
• Establish best-practice functional assays, including stimulation protocols and standard readouts such as force, fatigue and design experimental designs with endpoint drug studies
• Support collaborations with knowledge and hands-on support as needed.
• Execute rigorous data analysis and documentation according to internal quality practices (e.g. SOPs, experiment traceability, reproducibility standards).
• Effectively communicate results via internal and external presentations and written reports, application notes and peer-review papers.

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Required Qualifications

• PhD in Biomedical Engineering, Bioengineering, Cell Biology, Regenerative Medicine, Biomaterials, or related field (or MS with 5 years industry experience; BS with 8 years may be considered depending on expertise).
• Strong, demonstrated 3D tissue engineering experience with skeletal muscle as a primary focus (e.g., engineered skeletal muscle constructs, myobundles, muscle-on-a-chip, aligned myotube systems).
• Deep understanding of skeletal muscle development and myogenesis, including markers, maturation pathways, and differentiation optimization.
• Extensive hands-on expertise in mammalian cell culture and sterile techniques, including complex co-cultures when applicable.
• Proven ability to design experiments, troubleshoot effectively, and deliver reproducible results in a fast-moving R&D environment.
• Strong documentation and scientific communication skills.

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Preferred Qualifications (Nice to Have)

• Exposure to cardiac tissue development, such as iPSC-cardiomyocyte differentiation, cardiac spheroids/organoids, engineered heart tissue (EHT), or cardiac microphysiological systems.
• Experience with functional readouts: traction force/contractility analysis, multielectrode arrays (MEA), impedance, calcium transient analysis, patch clamp, or optical mapping.
• Expertise in biomaterials and ECM systems (e.g., collagen, fibrin, Matrigel alternatives, gelatin-based hydrogels, decellularized ECM), including mechanical tuning and gel formulation.
• Familiarity with microfluidics, organ-on-a-chip platforms, bioreactors, perfusion culture, cyclic stretch systems, or electrical pacing.
• Experience with imaging and analysis pipelines (confocal, high-content imaging, ImageJ/Fiji, Python/R, MATLAB).
• Experience working under QMS/GLP-like environments, writing SOPs, and supporting partner-facing deliverables.

Personal Qualities

You are enthusiastic, self-driven, and service-minded, with a strong technical flair and problem-solving mindset. A true team player, you thrive in dynamic environments, manage multiple priorities effectively, and communicate clearly while building strong relationships with colleagues, customers, and partners.

Travel is required.

You should expect travel in the range of 20-30% annually

Benefits:

• Competitive salary
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) plan with match
• Paid time off

If you are passionate about cutting-edge technology and have the required skills to support our unique automated patch clamp and organ-on-a-chip systems, we invite you to apply and be a key player in advancing scientific research and discovery!

Sophion Bioscience is an equal-opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic recognized by law.