Molecular Biology Intern (High-Throughput Assays)

Design and execute cloning strategies for custom protein libraries and individual variants (PCR, Gibson/Golden Gate, site-directed mutagenesis). Support expression and basic QC of selected binders (e.g., SDS-PAGE, Western blot, simple purification or lysate-based functional assays). Analyze high-dimensional assay data (e.g., from flow cytometry or barcoded readouts) to rank candidates based on affinity, specificity, and other performance metrics. Work with computational design, protein production, and assay development teams to integrate experimental results into the design-build-test-learn cycle. Contribute to a final internal report and presentation describing the developed workflows, experimental results, and recommendations for future development. Strong molecular biology foundation: PCR, cloning (e.g., Gibson, Golden Gate), site-directed mutagenesis. Plasmid design, sequence verification, and basic construct troubleshooting. Experience with protein expression and characterization in at least one system (yeast, E. coli, or cell-free): Induction/optimization of expression, basic purification or lysate-based assays, SDS-PAGE/Western. Hands-on experience with high-throughput or quantitative assay formats, such as: Flow cytometry / FACS, plate-based binding assays (ELISA or similar), or cell-based functional assays. Comfort with data analysis and visualization: Experience with Python, R, or analysis tools such as GraphPad Prism is nice to have. General awareness and experience with AI data analysis Yeast surface display, phage display, ribosome/mRNA display, or other library-based screening technologies. Experience with conjugation and bioconjugation methods, for example: Cysteine-based conjugation (maleimide-thiol, halo tag, SNAP/CLIP, etc.). Click chemistry (e.g., azide-alkyne, DBCO, strain-promoted cycloaddition). DNA-barcoding of proteins, or other methods linking proteins to nucleic acids or reporters. Familiarity with translation-linked or puromycin-based conjugation methods, or related approaches that couple protein synthesis to covalent capture is highly desired. Background in protein engineering, antibody/nanobody development, or de novo mini-binder workflows.