Principal Scientist - In Vitro Pharmacology - Assay Development and Screening

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Novo Nordisk seeks a Principal Scientist in In Vitro Pharmacology in Lexington, MA onsite to develop cell-based assays, conduct functional screening, and guide lead candidate selection across modalities. You will lead independent, cross-functional projects, implement novel assay technologies, and ensure data integrity under FAIR standards while collaborating with global teams and external partners. Qualifications include a PhD with 8+ years or a Master with 12+ years in pharmacology or related fields, hands-on HTS, cell-based PD models, and experience coordinating CROs or academia. To apply, spotlight strategic impact, collaborations, and regulatory-ready data; share concrete examples of target validation, assay development, and data-driven decisions; demonstrate mentorship and problem solving.

About the Department  

Our Research & Development organization brings together the best minds in life science innovation. The teams located in facilities in Lexington, Watertown, Cambridge and Plainsboro reflect the full R&D continuum, from early research through late-stage clinical development. Here, we are building for the future, creating a distinct R&D community based on collaboration, partnerships, and cutting-edge research across multiple modalities and therapeutic areas. We recognize that improving human health starts here and that patients rely on us. Our R&D hub merges biotech speed and agility with large pharmaceutical company quality, resources, and stability, uniting the best of both worlds to develop new medicines for patients.

The Position

In your role as Principal Scientist – In Vitro Pharmacology you will be responsible for development of cell-based assays for emerging targets and functional screening of drug candidates to guide candidate design and selection. You will work with diverse modalities: small molecules, peptides and proteins, drug conjugates, as well as occasionally oligonucleotides. You will contribute to early screening strategy and execution to ensure identification of hits and lead candidates with desired in vitro potency, efficacy and selectivity. You will evaluate and implement new bioassay techniques and in vitro pharmacology protocols and recommend acquisition and application of instrumentation and technologies within high throughput screening and mechanistic biology. You will display subject matter knowledge within in vitro biology and pharmacology throughout early-stage drug discovery, with a solid understanding of the role of other scientific disciplines in applied drug research. You will be responsible for developing, executing, and documenting experimental procedures and ensuring that data is interpreted, processed, and stored in line with FAIR data principles.

As a member of various project teams, you will be responsible for driving activities as an individual contributor, with opportunities to serve as a project lead and/or subject-specific coordinator. You will be relied upon to set your own direction and work independently with minimal guidance from your manager or other senior colleagues, including hands-on responsibility for taking on challenging tasks where you will be expected to exhibit creativity and an ability to solve problems of high complexity. To achieve this, you will conduct relevant research of primary scientific literature, internal records, and other databases, as well as draw upon your internal and external scientific network to obtain knowledge, advice, and/or experimental protocols. You will contribute to innovation by exploring cell signaling mechanisms and coming up with new ways of quantifying those in cell-based or cell-derived systems, identifying and evaluating emerging assay technologies, and developing novel screening tools and methodologies.

You may lead experiment teams consisting of other colleagues within and outside our department to achieve project goals. You will be responsible for setting experiment timelines to meet project deliverables, including data generation, analyses, and reporting. You may be called upon to provide input and training related to specific in vitro biology methods or technologies, and to develop, optimize, and draft protocols, study plans and reports. Depending on the project objectives, you may be required to set up and/or manage collaborations with external partners, including CROs, biotech companies and/or academic research groups. You will be required to present ideas and data to your department, the research site, and/or global project teams. Depending upon business need or circumstance, you may be required to mentor or be shadowed by less experienced team members. In your daily work, you will collaborate closely with scientists within the Chemical Biology team, other teams across our growing US R&D Hub, and global project teams. The working environment at Novo Nordisk is dynamic and innovative and involves interactions with colleagues from research sites in Denmark, UK, and China, with an excellent opportunity to establish a strong global scientific network.

Relationships

Internal relationships include working closely with researchers and scientific leadership within Greater Boston R&D Hub and across global research sites and other areas and functions within Novo Nordisk. Individual may interact and represent department and/or project team with external research collaborators both academia- & industry-based when required. Reports to of the head of In Vitro Pharmacology. Individual Contributor: does not manage other employees or contingent workers; however, the person might be tasked with coaching and/or supervising other team members.

Essential Functions

• Advances research projects by applying broad knowledge of early drug discovery.
• Support target validation and maturation, conducts mode-of-action studies and high-throughput screening in close collaboration with colleagues from therapeutic areas, chemist, formulation scientists, data stewards and other stakeholders.
• Designs and executes early screening strategies to identify lead candidates with desired pharmacological profiles.
• Develops, validates, and implements in vitro assay technologies from molecular design of genetically encoded biosensors through cell line engineering and assay validation.
• Stays updated on the latest scientific advancements and technologies; evaluates, sources and implements novel tools and methodologies suitable to study ligand binding, evaluate target engagement and characterize pharmacodynamic properties of drug candidates.
• Provides expert guidance on the design and selection of drug candidates, ensuring alignment with target product profile in relevant potency and selectivity bioassays.
• Analyzes, interprets and communicates data from in vitro studies to provide insights and recommendations internally and externally, including regulatory submissions.
• Ensures data integrity so that the in vitro pharmacology area abides by FAIR data standards, furnishing project teams with the highest quality data and in a timely fashion to enable efficient decision-making, and enabling long-term data repurposing and machine learning ambitions.
• Leads projects, manages collaborations and coordinates cross-functional teams to achieve strategic objectives, integrating insights from in vitro pharmacology with other related disciplines to inform data-driven drug development processes.
• Recognized as an expert within the organization and externally, represents the organization and provides guidance within the field of expertise to project teams and scientific leadership.
• Contribute to the strategic direction of the team and organizational area by providing insights and recommendations within and beyond subject matter expertise.
• Actively contributes to building psychologically and physically safe work environment. Foster a culture of continuous learning and development within the team. Fosters integrity, cooperativity and mutual respect within the team and across the organization.
• Serves as a mentor for peers and supervises junior staff members as required.

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree with 12 years, or a PhD with 8 years of relevant experience can be considered. A degree within pharmacological, biological or biochemical sciences preferred.
• Profound understanding of molecular pharmacology principles and practical experience working with cutting-edge in vitro screening technologies
• Hands-on experience in developing and improving in vitro cell-based models and detection systems for pharmacodynamic studies and high throughput screening
• Broad understanding of pharmaceutical industry dynamics and drug discovery processes in a matrix organization from ideation to lead candidate selection
• Proven experience in leading/managing complex projects of strategic importance, including managing relationships with external partners (CROs, biotech companies, academic groups)
• Track record in contributing to design and execution of early screening strategies, and supporting target validation and maturation and informing mode-of-action studies
• Ability to interpret and solve complex business issues with innovative mindset, recommend best practices and solutions, stretching beyond core subject matter expertise
• Proficiency in communicating and presenting scientific data internally, externally, and in regulatory submissions
• Prior experience working in cross-disciplinary research teams, dynamically evolving laboratory environment, and demonstrated contribution to change management
• Competence in onboarding, utilizing and integrating industry standard laboratory equipment and instrumentation suitable for moderate-to-high throughput screening
• Demonstrated digital mindset i.e., experience with applications, software and/or other types of computational tools for electronic record-keeping, entity registration, inventory management tools, data processing and visualization

Preferred experience includes:

• Experience working with targets relevant for cardiometabolic and/or rare diseases
• Familiarity with external sourcing and/or partnering opportunities within in vitro assay development and compound screening space, both locally and globally
• Mentorship experience within the field of scientific expertise
• Exposure and/or relevant experience within any other closely related scientific disciplines, such as cell imaging, biophysics, protein-protein interactions, structural biology, enzymology, formulation, analytical chemistry or other

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.

At Novo Nordisk, we're not chasing quick fixes – we're creating lasting change for long-term health. For over 100 years, we've been driven by a single purpose: to defeat serious chronic diseases and help millions of people live healthier lives. This dedication fuels our constant curiosity and inspires us to push the boundaries of what's possible in healthcare. We embrace diverse perspectives, seek out bold ideas, and build partnerships rooted in shared purpose. Together, we're making healthcare more accessible, treating and defeating diseases, and pioneering solutions that create change spanning generations. When you join us, you become part of something bigger – a legacy of impact that reaches far beyond today.

Novo Nordisk is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal laws, rules or regulations.

If you are interested in applying to Novo Nordisk and need special assistance or an accommodation to apply, please call us at 1-855-411-5290. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.