Dr. Reddy’s Institute of Life Sciences (DRILS)

Job Position: Research Scientist – Formulation R&D

Qualifications:

• Educational Qualifications:
  • Fresh PhD or PhD + Postdoctoral Experience in Chemistry, Biochemistry, Pharmaceutical sciences, a relevant branch of Engineering, or Life Sciences.
  • Evidence of exceptional ability in the relevant field.
• Technical Skills and Knowledge:
  • Deep understanding of formulation principles and techniques.
  • Knowledge of chemical and physical properties of materials used in Pharmaceutical Formulations.
  • Proficiency in various formulation techniques and analytical methodologies.
• Interdisciplinary Abilities:
  • Ability to read and understand diverse literature across many disciplines relevant to drugs/nucleic acid delivery.
  • Ability to distill new ideas and apply them to work.
• Problem-Solving and Communication:
  • Ability to identify challenges and bottlenecks in development and suggest mitigation proposals.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
  • Ability to present scientific findings clearly and concisely.
• Team and Collaborative Skills:
  • A collaborative mindset.
  • Ability to work effectively within a team environment.
• Analytical and Experimental Abilities:
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
  • Demonstrated track record of independently interpreting experimental data and troubleshooting technical challenges.
• Workload Management:
  • Willingness to handle substantial and often repetitive formulation and characterization workloads.
  • Desire to rapidly learn, troubleshoot, and master new experimental techniques.

Areas of Relevant Experience (Note: Experience in all areas is not required, but more experience is advantageous):

• Drug Delivery Systems:
  • Lipid (Liposomes, LNPs, solid-lipid nanoparticles) or polymer-based (Polymeric nanoparticles/microparticles) systems.
• Polymer Chemistry:
  • Molecular weight, degradation behavior, synthesis.
• Peptide and Proteins:
  • Basic understanding, handling, stability, drug loading in DDS.
• Controlled Drug Delivery Systems:
  • Sustained and controlled systems (Implants, depot, in situ depot).
• Microfluidics:
  • Preferably for lipid or polymeric nanoparticle synthesis, encapsulation, and characterization.
• Formulation or Nanoparticle Downstream Purification Methods:
  • Techniques such as ultrafiltration and TFF.
• Formulation or Nanoparticle Characterization:
  • Particle size and zeta potential measurements, pKa determination, viscosity.
• Microscopy Techniques:
  • TEM, SEM, Confocal.
• Spectroscopy, Spectrometry and Thermal Techniques:
  • UV, Fluorescence, FTIR, Circular Dichroism, Raman, PXRD, DLS, DSC, MS, NMR.
• Size Exclusion Chromatography and Techniques for Characterizing Biopharmaceuticals:
• Analytical Techniques to Characterize Polymeric DDS:
  • Particle size, drug content by UPLC/HPLC, drug loading, drug release.
• Analysis and Characterization of Higher Order Structures or Conformations:
• Biophysical Characterization:
  • Size, aggregates, mechanisms of instability, thermal denaturation, ligand binding.
• Nucleic Acid Quantification Techniques:
  • RiboGreen-style assays and NanoDrop-style spectrophotometry.
• In Vitro Cell Evaluation of DDS:
  • Cell/cell lines handling, culture, DDS evaluation on various cell models.
• In Vivo Evaluation of DDS:
  • Animal handling, dosing, disease model development and evaluation of DDS.

Application Process:

• Interested candidates may send their curriculum vitae by e-mail to hr@drils.org on or before 10th June 2024 with “Formulation Lab” as the subject line of the email.
• There will be two rounds of interviews:
  1. Phone interview for shortlisted candidates.
  2. Personal interview at Dr. Reddy’s Institute of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad Campus, Gachibowli, Hyderabad (optional Skype/teleconference interview if unable to attend in person).