Principal Scientist, Global Discovery Chemistry

Description

Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine is recruiting for a Principal Scientist in Global Discovery Chemistry, for our Peptide group in Medicinal Chemistry at our site in Spring House, PA.

At Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine, what matters most is helping people live full and healthy lives. We focus on treating, curing and preventing some of the most devastating and complex diseases of our time. And we pursue the most promising science, wherever it might be found.

Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine discovers and develops innovative medical solutions to address important unmet medical needs in oncology, immunology, neuroscience, infectious diseases and vaccines, and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

We are Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine. Our mission drives us. Our patients inspire us. We collaborate with the world for the health of everyone in it.

Thriving on a diverse company culture, celebrating the uniqueness of our employees and committed to inclusion. Proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

The Peptide group within Global Discovery Chemistry group is committed to the delivery of high-quality drug candidates working across all Therapeutic Areas (TAs). This mission requires deep scientific expertise in a number of disciplines including chemistry, cellular and molecular pharmacology, enzymology, and screening technologies coupled with an ability to work collaboratively with internal and external partners. Building on a strong legacy of success, we are currently seeking an outstanding individual to join our team as Scientist, Discovery Chemistry. This position will be based at our drug discovery site in Spring House, PA.

We are seeking an experienced, highly skilled, and motivated chemist with excellent peptide chemistry and medicinal chemistry expertise to shepherd peptide drug discovery programs and advance them toward the clinic. This position will require the candidate to possess and leverage deep knowledge and capabilities to deliver differentiated clinical candidates to the Janssen product development pipeline within our Disease and Pathway Area Stronghold (DAS and PAS) strategy. Using a mix of internal and external resources, the Principal Scientist will partner with key stakeholders in the TAs and other internal groups, represent medicinal chemistry, lead cross-functional project teams, and be co-responsible for building, managing, and delivering high quality clinical molecules.

Responsibilities of the Principal Scientist will include

As a dynamic medicinal chemist, drive and contribute to the peptide chemistry function for one or more drug discovery projects, working in concert with partners in molecular and cellular biology, pharmacology, computational chemistry, chemistry capabilities, ADME, structural biology, chemical development, and other key functions. Work collaboratively with other Janssen drug discovery sites, including Boston, MA, La Jolla, CA, South San Francisco, CA, and Beerse, Belgium, and with Johnson & Johnson Innovation Centers worldwide Analyze synthetic routes to designed compounds, screening data, perform literature reviews, design, propose, and execute medicinal chemistry plans, coordinate chemistry and biology data to support compound progression and patent strategies Independently designing and synthesizing drug-like peptide molecules utilizing current medicinal chemistry knowledge, including property-based optimization, and an understanding of ADME, pharmacokinetics and optimal physicochemical properties. Provide scientific direction and leadership for synthetic and medicinal chemistry activities of internal FTEs. This role may have direct people management responsibilities. Supervise and direct synthetic chemistry activities at contract research organizations (CROs) Contribute to portfolio and stage-gate reviews, lead the preparation and presentation of dossiers for clinical candidate nomination and compound advancement Participate in shaping and implementing strategies that support synthetic and medicinal chemistry growth objectives at Janssen, including academic relations and talent acquisition Ensure optimal interaction/communication and provide updates on project status to drug discovery leadership Maintain a significant level of productivity in the laboratory setting

Qualifications

PhD is required in peptide, synthetic organic, or medicinal chemistry A minimum of 3 or more years’ experience in the biopharmaceutical industry with a proven track record of key contributions to innovative peptide projects impacting the trajectory of programs leading to Go/NoGo decisions and/or clinical candidate selection Broad experience and proven accomplishments in medicinal chemistry is preferred; experience in one or more therapeutic areas is preferred Demonstrated operational skills for contributing to discovery programs at the level of a senior chemist/team leader are preferred Experience designing peptide conformational restraints to influence secondary structure (ie. a-helices, b-turn induction & mimicry, sidechain modifications) using computational modeling tools is required Good understanding of cellular/molecular biology, biochemistry, disease pharmacology, mechanisms of drug metabolism and molecular toxicology, pharmaco-kinetic and pharmaco-dynamic sciences, and formulations for the in vivo evaluation of drug candidates Knowledge of and/or experience with computational chemistry methods and biophysical techniques such as X-ray crystallography and macromolecular NMR is required Strong problem-solving skills for developing creative, innovative solutions, and meeting project objectives are required Demonstrated influence, negotiation, and conflict resolution skills, including the ability to succeed within a matrix environment, are required Design and synthesis of constrained macrocycles, de-peptidization strategies including back-bone modifications and peptidomimetics is required

Preferred

Experience is: Peptide hit finding approaches – phage display, mRNA display technologies, etc. Cell penetrating peptides Permeable and orally bioavailable peptides Intracellular protein-protein interaction targets Chemical biology using cyclic peptide scaffolds Strong track record of scientific contributions including peer reviewed first-author publications, patent applications, and presentations at major national meetings is preferred

Johnson & Johnson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.