Research Specialist D

About the role

The BRITE Lab at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania seeks a Research Specialist D to advance new therapeutics towards the clinic and contribute to the scientific work that will be published from the lab. The primary function of this position is to perform in vitro and in vivo mouse studies, colony maintenance, and day-to-day management of the research bench.

Responsibilities

• Perform immunological functional assays in vitro including CAR T cell manufacturing, flow cytometry, and ELISA.
• Evaluate immune therapies using established protocols and contribute to development of new methods implementing state-of-the-art techniques.
• Execute mouse studies using established protocols and contribute to development of new protocols under the direction of the lab supervisor.
• Modify and prepare tumor cells and engineered immune therapies for in vivo mouse experiments, documenting their characteristics and performing assays defining functional performance.
• Maintain and monitor animal health, weight, and therapeutic responses, collecting datasets from the study (tumor growth, therapeutic engraftment, histology, ex vivo assays).
• Perform IV, IT, IP, and SC injections of tumor cells and therapeutics.
• Prepare tissues at necropsy by fixing and isolating cells for functional and flow cytometric analysis, IHC, and spatial transcriptomic studies.
• Document experimental data, perform data analysis, and prepare presentations of results under the guidance of the lab director for lab meetings and manuscript contributions.
• Manage day-to-day research bench operations including reagent inventory, equipment upkeep, and protocol organization to ensure smooth lab function.
• Characterize transgenic mice and maintain colony.

Requirements

• Master of Science in Immunology, Cell Biology, Biomedical Sciences, or a related field with 3–5 years of relevant research experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Hands-on experience with in vitro immunological assays including flow cytometry, ELISA, cell culture, and co-culture killing assays.
• Experience with in vivo mouse models including tumor inoculation, therapeutic administration, and monitoring.
• Strong organizational and documentation skills.

Preferred Experience

• Experience with tissue processing techniques including IHC and spatial transcriptomics.
• Experience with bioimaging for tumor growth assessment.
• Experience supporting or contributing to IND (Investigational New Drug) studies.
• Prior contribution to peer-reviewed publications.
• Knowledge/understanding in spatial transcriptomics and bioinformatics.
• Knowledge/understanding in microbiology.