Merck
Associate Principal Scientist, Immunology Discovery
- Location
- San Diego (Science Park Road), CA (CA)
- Posted
- Posted yesterday (employer shows the date only)
- Source
- Workday (employer's applicant tracking system)
- Category
- R&D/Science
- Industry
- Pharma/Biotech
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From the employer's posting
Job Description
The Associate Principal Scientist will lead translational discovery activities through strong expertise in immune cell biology, human disease models, assay development, and data interpretation. The candidate will use primary immune cell systems, ex vivo patient samples, co-culture models, tissue analyses, and multi-omics datasets to build decision-enabling translational packages.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design, execute, analyze, and interpret translational experiments to validate therapeutic targets in immunology, inflammation, and autoimmunity.
- Develop disease-relevant in vitro, ex vivo, co-culture, and patient-derived tissue models.
- Integrate mechanistic, pharmacology, transcriptomic, spatial, and biomarker data to connect target biology with disease pathophysiology and mechanism of action.
- Generate decision-enabling data packages to support target prioritization, candidate progression, biomarker hypotheses, and patient selection.
- Apply deep immunology expertise to design fit-for-purpose experiments and address key scientific questions.
- Introduce innovative translational models, technologies, and analytical platforms.
- Represent the function on project teams and communicate plans, progress, risks, and recommendations clearly.
- Collaborate with discovery biology, translational medicine, biomarker sciences, data science, pharmacology, clinical development, academia, and CRO partners.
- Mentor junior scientists through scientific guidance, experimental oversight, and data interpretation support.
- Promote scientific rigor, high-quality documentation, inclusion, and a one-team mindset.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Education:
- Bachelor's (with 13+ years), Master's (with 9+ years) or Ph.D. (with 5+ years) in immunology, cell biology, molecular biology, translational science, biomedical sciences or related discipline and relevant experience.
Required Experience and Skills:
- Strong foundation in immunology, inflammation, autoimmunity, or related immune-mediated disease biology.
- Demonstrated ability to independently design, troubleshoot, and interpret complex biological experiments.
- Hands-on experience with primary cell culture, immune-cell assays, co-culture systems, tissue models, or ex vivo human sample platforms.
- Ability to analyze biological, biochemical, immunological, and translational assay data and design follow-up studies.
- Clear communication of complex science to multidisciplinary audiences.
- Effective collaboration across functions and ability to contribute to multiple projects in a matrixed environment.
Preferred Experience and Skills:
- Experience developing translational models of inflammatory or autoimmune disease, immune-cell activation, tissue inflammation, or immune-mediated pathology.
- Expertise with flow cytometry, cytokine profiling, imaging, multiplex tissue analysis, spatial biology, transcriptomics, or related platforms.
- Experience integrating human datasets with experimental models to define mechanism of action, pharmacodynamic biomarkers, responder hypotheses, or combination strategies.
- Experience supporting drug discovery from target validation through candidate nomination or early clinical translation.
- Familiarity with immune-mediated diseases such as IBD, rheumatoid arthritis, hidradenitis suppurativa, psoriatic disease, lupus, asthma, or atopic dermatitis.
- Experience leading external collaborations or coordinating CRO work.
#EligibleforERP
Required Skills:
Autoimmune Diseases, Cell Biology, Cell Cultures, Immunology, Immunology Research, Immunotherapy, Inflammatory Diseases, Molecular Cell Biology, Translational Research
Preferred Skills:
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Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.
As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:
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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.
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San Diego, California, United States of America