Research Associate, Protein Expression

Research Associate
The Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) is a non-profit research institute focusing on developing translational solutions for treatment, prevention and diagnostics of diseases relevant in global child & adolescent health. We are looking for a Research Associate to support the design, development, and optimization of protein expression platforms to support our cutting-edge research in immune engineering.

The key responsibilities of the Research Associate:

• Implement high-throughput strategies for the expression and purification of recombinant proteins in various expression systems.
• Operate and maintain laboratory equipment for fermentation, cell culture, protein purification, and analysis.
• Screen expression conditions using small-scale expression studies to identify optimal conditions for large-scale protein production.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality proteins for biochemical assays, structural studies, and therapeutic development.
• Analyze and interpret experimental data, maintaining detailed records of experiments and outcomes.
• Contribute to the development of new technologies and methodologies to improve (high-throughput) protein expression workflows.
• Prepare technical reports, summaries, protocols, and quantitative analyses.
• Present findings to team members and contribute to scientific discussions within the group.

Core skills and experience expected from the Research Associate:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• Familiarity with molecular biology techniques, such as PCR, cloning, and vector construction.
• Experience in recombinant protein expression and purification using a variety of expression systems (e.g., E. coli, yeast, insect, mammalian cells).
• Familiarity with high-throughput techniques and automation tools for protein expression and purification.
• Proficient in analytical techniques for protein characterization (e.g., SDS-PAGE, Western blot, HPLC).
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team-oriented environment.

In addition, these skills make you even more successful in this role:

• Experience in a life science research environment.
• Experience with Benchling for documenting laboratory results and storing data

About the Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering

The Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) is a newly founded non-profit research organization aiming to become a world leading research institute for the advanced study of immunological systems with a mission to develop translational solutions for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease. The scientific foundation of the BIIE and the broader field of Immune Engineering is based on the intersection of three interdisciplinary subdomains: (i) systems immunology, (ii) synthetic immunology and (iii) computational immunology. The BIIE will serve as a hub for multidisciplinary science, by uniting people with diverse expertise in immunology, biomedicine, bioengineering, systems and synthetic biology, computational biology, artificial intelligence and machine learning. As part of the mission of BIIE to make a lasting impact, it will dedicate significant efforts in training early-stage researchers in this unique multidisciplinary environment, thus enabling them to become future leaders in Immune Engineering.