MSAT Scientist

Job id: 087166. Salary: £37,332 - £42,099 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance.

Posted: 02 April 2024. Closing date: 22 April 2024.

Business unit: Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine. Department: Comprehensive Cancer Centre.

Contact details:Simon Walker. [email protected]

Location: Denmark Hill Campus. Category: Professional & Support Services.

The Cell and Gene Therapy group at King's (CGT-K) manufactures a variety of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs) in state-of-the-art Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facilities for novel therapies of different cancers and rare diseases.

This post supports the translation of cutting-edge medicinal research into clinical application.

It is an opportunity to work within a leading translational Gene Therapy Innovation Hub led by the Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, focussed on the delivery of Lentiviral and Retroviral gene therapy products for early phase clinical trials as well as AAV gene therapies.

As an experienced scientist the post holder will work within the CGT-K MSAT team at Denmark Hill involved in manufacturing cell therapies/ viral vectors for clinical trials. The MSAT team are responsible for engineering runs, preGMP productions, process optimisation and improvement and investigations in the R&D labs. They will also take part in GMP productions as operators, assistants, trainers and observers in the GMP cleanrooms. The post holder will require a wide range of molecular and cell biology skills such as cell culture, transfections, QPCR etc. They will also need GMP experience, ideally in viral vector manufacturing, including cleanroom operations, following and writing GMP compliant documentation such as SOPs and BMRs, change controls and operating inside a QMS. This is a cross functional role, and the post holder will need strong flexibility, interpersonal and organisational skills as they will be interacting with the Production, QA and Technical teams, whilst ultimately reporting to the Head of MSAT.

This post will be offered on an indefinite contract   

This is a full-time post

• Lead or assist in engineering and pre GMP production runs of recombinant lenti and retro virus at various scales in the R&D labs
• Lead or assist in titre assessments by RT-PCR, dPCR, ELISA, additional QC assays in the R&D labs
• Assist in process optimisation and development experiments
• Train production staff in new process, techniques and equipment both in the R&D lab and in the GMP cleanroom
• Write GMP compliant summary reports of completed projects
• Write change controls to onboard new processes, techniques and equipment into GMP production
• Be fully qualified as a GMP production operator and provide support to the production team
• Lead on training in specific technical/ scientific areas of expertise.
• Lead on the general running of the R&D labs
• Ability to work independently based on an agreed work plan, setting own priorities and those of the team, working cooperatively to achieve the service objectives.
• Forge relationships with colleagues in the university and externally, to disseminate and get information, coordinate and deliver the required service.
• Nurture and encourage sustainable practices and leadership within your team and networks.
• Be responsible for the compliance with Health & Safety and other relevant regulations governing the service
• Facilitate an inclusive culture and ethos working with academic, research and other professional services staff and colleagues external to King’s

The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.

Essential criteria

Desirable criteria

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert.

If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’   pages.

This role does not meet the requirements of the Home Office and therefore we are not able to offer sponsorship for candidates who require the right to work in the UK.

This post is subject to Disclosure and Barring Service and/or Occupational Health clearances.