Company Description

Bicycle Therapeutics is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing a novel class of medicines, referred to as Bicycle® molecules, for diseases that are underserved by existing therapeutics. Bicycle molecules are fully synthetic short peptides constrained with small molecule scaffolds to form two loops that stabilize their structural geometry. This constraint facilitates target binding with high affinity and selectivity, making Bicycle molecules attractive candidates for drug development. The company is evaluating zelenectide pevedotin (formerly BT8009), a Bicycle® Toxin Conjugate (BTC®) targeting Nectin-4, a well-validated tumor antigen; BT5528, a BTC molecule targeting EphA2, a historically undruggable target; and BT7480, a Bicycle Tumor-Targeted Immune Cell Agonist® (Bicycle TICA®) targeting Nectin-4 and agonizing CD137, in company-sponsored clinical trials. Additionally, the company is developing Bicycle® Radio Conjugates (BRC™) for radiopharmaceutical use and, through various partnerships, is exploring the use of Bicycle® technology to develop therapies for diseases beyond oncology.

Bicycle Therapeutics is headquartered in Cambridge, UK, with many key functions and members of its leadership team located in Cambridge, Massachusetts US.

Culture is key and all Bicycle employees actively embrace and role model our company values:

• We are Adventurous. We believe it's the way to deliver extraordinary results for our patients.
• We are Dedicated to our Mission. You can't change the world if you don't have determination
• We are One Team. We only succeed when we work together.

Job Description

We have an exciting opportunity for a Research Scientist to join the Protein & Cellular Sciences Team: You will join a small team dedicated to acquisition and production of high quality cellular and recombinant protein material to facilitate the Bicycle® discovery platform.

You will be predominantly lab-based and will be responsible for working with the wider team to deliver protein & cellular reagents. This will primarily involve, with support, the design and production of cell pools or cell lines to enable selection and characterisation of novel peptides identified by the Bicycle® Screening platform.

In addition to above, the role will include working across the wider team to provide protein scientists samples suitable for protein purification. The role will include a split of both routine and non-standard work, initially at a 3:2 ratio. The role would be well suited to any flexible individuals who are familiar with cell biology and wish to extend their expertise in protein science through developing theoretical and practical skills in secreted protein expression, purification and biochemical analysis.

You should be comfortable with a fast-paced, dynamic working environment and hold excellent communication skills to facilitate the necessary close interactions within the Protein & Cellular Sciences and wider Platform Technology & Science teams.

Key responsibilities

• Supply high quality protein & cellular material to support the Bicycle® Discovery platform
  • Support research into target biology and sourcing of necessary reagents to evaluate new targets
  • Generation of stable cell pools or cell lines, adapting procedures as required.
  • Quantification of protein expression by flow cytometry and Westen Blot
• Contribute to the day-to-day maintenance and running of the tissue culture facility
  • Act as point contact for DNA & cell bank ordering and inventory management
  • Maintenance of adherent and suspension cells to supply the wider team
  • Maintenance of laboratories, equipment, and reagents stocks
• Help to present data and conclusions to project teams in oral or written form, including possible next steps to drive projects forward
  • With assistance, problem-solve, troubleshoot and identify next steps and solutions
  • Interact and communicate efficiently in a collaborative environment involving cross-functional teams
  • Record experiments accurately and diligently in electronic lab books and databases to allow efficient query, retrieval and decision making.
• Work to existing SOPs and risk assessments and contribute to generating new protocols as appropriate.

Qualifications

Essential:

• Educated in life sciences relevant to the above or equivalent qualification
• Experience of working in a biotech or industrial environment or equivalent
• Molecular Biology: Experience in design & propagation of DNA expression plasmids (restriction enzymes)
• Mammalian cell culture experience (aseptic technique, subculture of suspension and/or adherent cell lines, transfection, cryopreservation, etc.)
• Theoretical knowledge of flow cytometry
• Strong interpersonal skills, confident and experienced in presenting data
• Diligent in documenting work and adherent to data integrity requirements

Desirable:

• Practical experience of flow cytometry & cell sorting
• Molecular biology experience in DNA assembly and cloning (Gibson, HiFi, Golden Gate)
• Experience in protein expression analysis (qPCR, SDS-PAGE & Western Blotting) and subsequent purification (AKTA)
• Experience in using data analysis software packages and ELNs e.g. Dotmatics and GraphPad Prism

Additional Information

• State-of-the-art campus environment with on campus restaurant and Montessori nursery
• Flexible working environment
• Competitive reward including annual company bonus
• Employee recognition schemes
• 28 days annual leave in addition to bank holidays + option to buy up to 5 additional days annually
• Employer contribution to pension (employee does not have to contribute)
• Life assurance cover 4x basic salary
• Private Medical Insurance, including optical and dental cover.
• Group income protection
• Employee assistance program
• Health Cash Plan
• Access to company subsidized gym membership.
• Eligibility for an option grant to subscribe to shares in Bicycle Therapeutics plc.
• Cycle to work scheme

Bicycle Therapeutics is committed to building a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve. We recognize that diverse and inclusive teams build a stronger and more innovative company. Therefore, all qualified applicants will be considered for employment, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability status, marital status, or veteran status.