Benefits:

• 100% Medical, Dental & Vision Coverage for Employees
• Paid Time Off (Including Holidays)
• Employee Referral Bonus
• 401K Match
• Tuition reimbursement and professional development opportunities
• Flexible Spending Accounts:
  • Healthcare (FSA)
  • Parking Reimbursement Account (PRK)
  • Dependent Care Assistant Program (DCAP)
  • Transportation Reimbursement Account (TRN)

Overview
Axle is seeking a highly ambitious, adaptable, structured, and detail-oriented Biologist to join our vibrant team at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Vaccine Research Center (VRC), Clinical Trials Program.

Technical Requirements:

• Manage the execution of in vivo rodent research within the Malaria Insectary Facility.
• Perform a variety of procedures and techniques including (but not limited to) Plasmodium sporozoite dissection, in vitro functional assays, molecular cloning, PCR, cell culture, recombinant protein production, and multi-parameter flow cytometry. 
• Expand and maintain mosquito cultures according to established protocols.
• Monitor the infection status of mosquitoes: blood feeding, natural transmission, and parasite isolations.
• Maintain malaria infected mosquito colonies and conduct in vivo malaria challenge experiments in rodents. 
• Conduct pre-clinical evaluation (PK and PD experiments) for malaria vaccines and monoclonal antibodies in animal models. 
• Develop methods to evaluate the protective effect of vaccines and mAbs in malaria in vivo models (via bioluminescence, immune- and clinical pathology analysis. 
• Design rodent malaria layouts/challenges to establish new protocols, procedures, doses and risks for malaria experiments with the objective of providing data sets that support safe human testing. 
• Proficiently perform common and specialized in vivo technical procedures necessary to maintain the progress of in vivo malaria experiments. 
• Plan, execute, and arrange relevant experiments, techniques and procedures within appropriate quality standards and timelines. 
• Regularly participate in meetings that are conducted to define vaccine development, antibodies, and manuscript publications on the area of malaria. 
• Meticulously collect, analyze, interpret, and report data for presentations, reports, and publications from diverse malaria experiments. 
• Record all procedures and research project data, data analyses, and analytical conclusions of analyses in government-authorized notebooks and electronic systems in accordance with applicable regulations and procedures. 
• Monitor and maintain inventory of routine laboratory supplies to ensure maximum efficiency; make recommendations and prepare purchase requests as needed. 
• Perform routine maintenance of the lab work area and specialized instruments and equipment.

Specific Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field. 
• Minimum of four (4) years of related work experience.
• Requires extensive experience with relevant laboratory practices, materials, and practice. 
• Must have hands on proficiency with common in vivo technical procedures in mice (compound administration, sample collection, imaging, surgery). 
• Preferred experience in the following techniques is highly desirable: preclinical malaria mouse challenge models, mosquito salivary gland/midgut dissection, IVIS in vivo imaging, multiparameter flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy, antibody/protein purification and characterization, ELISA, ELISPOT. 
• Must strictly adhere to safety standards and lab policies and maintain compliance with necessary training. 
• Possess strong oral and written communication skills. 
• Must have basic skills in applicable computer programs. 
• Must be able to work well both independently and with others on a team. 
• Must be able to maintain high level of organization, accuracy and attention to detail.
• Must be able to make detailed observations, analyze data, and interpret results independently. 
• Must be able to apply creative problem-solving skills and sound judgment in making timely decisions. 
• Requires flexibility to handle multiple tasks and provide support for multiple projects in a fast paced laboratory environment.

The diversity of Axle’s employees is a tremendous asset. We are firmly committed to providing equal opportunity in all aspects of employment and will not tolerate any illegal discrimination or harassment-based age, race, gender, religion, national origin, disability, marital status, covered veteran status, sexual orientation, status with respect to public assistance, and other characteristics protected under state, federal, or local law and to deter those who aid, abet, or induce discrimination or coerce others to discriminate.

Accessibility: If you need an accommodation as part of the employment process please contact: [email protected]

Disclaimer:The above description is meant to illustrate the general nature of work and level of effort being performed by individual’s assigned to this position or job description. This is not restricted as a complete list of all skills, responsibilities, duties, and/or assignments required. Individuals may be required to perform duties outside of their position, job description or responsibilities as needed.