Staff Scientist/Senior Staff Scientist, DMPK (industry experience required)

Septerna is a biotechnology company based in South San Francisco, CA on a mission to develop life-changing medicines for patients with the vision to become the industry-leading G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR)-focused drug discovery company. The company’s Native Complex Platform™ recapitulates GPCRs with their native structure, function, and dynamics outside of the cellular context. This approach enables novel access to modern structural and screening technologies used in industrial-scale drug discovery for the entire class of GPCRs. Septerna has an emerging pipeline of GPCR-targeted small molecule programs with potential for growth to target many GPCRs that have been undruggable and unexploited to date.

We are excited to expand our multidisciplinary team of individuals focused on creating revolutionary medicines to address the unmet needs of patients. At Septerna we strive to embrace diversity of thought, expertise, and background through collaboration. To join our ambitious team, be prepared to bring your real self to work every day; grow and learn from a talented team of drug hunters, scientists, and business professionals; and contribute your passion, creativity, and energy to accomplish our mission. We share a fearless pursuit of ground-breaking innovations and cultivate an environment where our employees succeed by learning from each other and working as a team.

We are committed to the development of meaningful therapeutics for patients with indications of high unmet need. This is a tremendous opportunity to work with talented individuals on the frontlines of therapeutic discovery and development. You will directly help move therapies through preclinical research, positioning them for success in the clinic. The successful candidate will add their passion, unique talents, and expertise to a dynamic team motivated to discover new disease-modifying therapeutics for patients in a fast-paced environment.

For more information see: www.septerna.com.

The Role:

We are seeking an accomplished and motivated DMPK scientist to join our team as a Staff Scientist/Senior Staff Scientist, DMPK.  This individual will play a pivotal role in driving our drug discovery efforts while also providing strategic support to our development-stage programs as needed.  The role offers a unique opportunity to work across the R&D continuum – from lead optimization through candidate nomination and IND-enabling studies – collaborating with innovative, cross-functional teams committed to developing safe and efficacious medicines for patients.  

The successful candidate will serve as a scientific leader within the DMPK function, providing subject matter expertise and program-facing support across small molecule discovery programs.  They will play a key role in ensuring continuity of DMPK strategies as programs advance into development and will contribute to functional strategy and capacity-building within the DMPK function.

Key responsibilities:

• Provide strategic and hands-on leadership of DMPK activities for multiple discovery-stage programs, including ADME/PK optimization, candidate nomination, and early development support


• Represent DMPK in cross-functional project teams and provide integrated ADME/PK guidance aligned with project objectives, timelines, and regulatory expectations


• Design, interpret, and report in vitro and in vivo studies (internal and CRO-based), including PK profiling, in vitro to in vivo correlations, and drug-drug interaction risk assessment


• Elucidate predictive ADME relationships, assess in vitro to in vivo correlations, PK/PD relationships, and perform human efficacious dose predictions using different approaches


• Guide development candidate selection through integration of ADME, PK/PD, physicochemical, and translational PK/PD modeling


• Author and review high-quality regulatory documents (e.g., INDs, IBs, and other regulatory filings) and contribute to regulatory strategy in collaboration with project and regulatory teams


• Collaborate closely with research and development colleagues and contribute to the growth of DMPK capabilities across the organization


• Provide scientific input to portfolio-level discussions and help align DMPK strategies with overall project and organizational goals

Qualifications:

• Doctorate degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Drug Metabolism, Pharmacokinetics, Biochemistry, or related discipline with 6+ years of relevant industry experience; or MS/BS degree with 10+ years of hands-on experience in DMPK within the pharmaceutical/biotech industry


• Proven track record of impactful scientific contributions to discovery and development programs (such as regulatory submissions and/or literature publications) demonstrating technical proficiency, independent thinking, and scientific creativity


• Deep understanding of DMPK science and its application to drug discovery and development, including a working knowledge of PK/PD modeling and human PK projection approaches


• Demonstrated technical proficiency, scientific creativity, strategic thinking, problem solving ability, and capable of independently designing and executing impactful hypothesis-driven experiments


• Experience supporting IND-enabling studies, including DDI risk assessments, human dose projection, and authoring of regulatory documents


• Up to date knowledge of technological and regulatory advances in the DMPK functional area


• Outstanding communication skills with demonstrated ability to make effective presentations in a broad range of settings, with strong collaboration and organizational skills


• The successful candidate will be motivated to discover new disease-modifying therapeutics for patients and enjoy working in a fast-paced dynamic team environment

The anticipated salary range for candidates who will work in South San Francisco, CA is $140,000 - $175,000. Individual pay may vary based on additional factors, including, and without limitation, job-related skills, experience, work location and relevant education or training. Septerna's compensation package also includes benefits, stock options, and annual target bonus for full-time positions.

We are an Equal Opportunity employer and will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability status. 

Note to Employment Agencies: Please do not forward any agency resumes. The company will not be responsible for any fees related to resumes that are unsolicited.