Research Associate, Analytical Chemistry

Brightseed

100

South San Francisco, CA / Remote, USA

Posted on: 2023-03-15

Category: agritech

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Expired

Employment type:

Full time

Remote?

Yes

Experience required:

Intermediate

Salary

Salary not provided

About the company:

Brightseed is a pioneer in biosciences and artificial intelligence (A.I.) that illuminates nature to restore human health. Brightseed’s proprietary A.I., Forager®, accelerates bioactive discovery, biological validation and ingredient formulation from years to months, rapidly revealing new connections between nature and humanity. Through Forager® and clinical evaluation, Brightseed partners with organizations across the consumer health continuum to offer insight into the world of bioactives and health solutions.

ABOUT BRIGHTSEED

ABOUT BIOACTIVES

Bioactives are small molecule compounds produced by plants, fungi, and microbes that grow in and adapt to environments that present a wide range of challenges to their survival. Bioactives also benefit the health of humans – they are the enlivening caffeine in tea, the powerful antioxidant lycopene in tomatoes or curcumin in turmeric, and they inform active ingredients in medicines like Taxol, aspirin and Metformin, the latter a first-line treatment for Type 2 diabetes derived from the French lilac flower. Science has long known that bioactives are critical to human health, yet the vast majority remain unknown and uncharted – often referred to as the “dark matter” of nutrition. Brightseed’s A.I., Forager®, discovers bioactives in nature and maps them to human health outcomes at a rate and accuracy that was previously impossible.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are hiring a detail-oriented analytical chemist who will work on purifying, quantifying, and characterizing small molecules in support of R&D and manufacturing efforts. At Brightseed, you will develop, improve, and apply analytical methods to quantify and purify small molecules from a variety of matrices using various analytical instruments such as HPLC, GC, and LC/MS. You will coordinate and perform workflows and sample preparations both for in-house analyses, as well as analyses at external analytical laboratories. As a key contributor to the R&D as a member of the Analytical team, you pride yourself on the quality and consistency of the research you perform. You are also self-starting, well-organized and enjoy collaborating with others, as you will be a part of a larger team of natural product chemists, molecular biologists, computational biologists, process engineers and product development scientists. Ultimately, you are truly excited about the opportunity to support the development and production of natural products that enable consumer health and wellness. This role is based in our South San Francisco headquarters and reports to our Senior Director of Analytical Chemistry.

THE BENEFITS YOU'LL ENJOY

As a lab based company, where in person collaboration is key to drive innovation, we encourage all team members to be in our office most days each week. However we appreciate and honor the need and desire for flexibility and have implemented a hybrid working model. We have a fully stocked healthy kitchen, a gym onsite, plenty of free parking, weekly team events and a state-of-the-art lab and office.

We offer a competitive total rewards package with team-first benefits programs for full-time employees, including medical, dental and vision coverage, unlimited paid time off, life insurance, employee assistance programs, 401(k) plan, a mental health platform, employee discounts, payroll credits for cell phone and commuter costs and a paid parental leave program.

JOIN US, AND BE YOU

We are committed to making transformative discoveries with a team-first mentality. Successful team members are truth-seeking and trusting, with the tenacity required to trail blaze in uncharted territory. We are a collaborative team that actively seeks input and values differing perspectives. And we produce tangible results, holding ourselves accountable in the process.

We are also committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of connectedness and inclusion. We grow and learn together, respecting professional and personal experiences, areas of expertise, and types of self expression.

In recruiting for our team, we welcome the unique contributions that each one of us brings in terms of education, opinions, culture, color, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, veteran’s status, religion, different abilities, sexual orientation and beliefs.

THE IMPACT YOU WILL MAKE

Hands-on execution of analytical methods and data analysis to characterize a range of sample types across R&D and manufacturing, including: raw plant materials, plant-derived extracts, in-process samples, and finished products.

Manage the streamlined operation of the Analytical team while preparing solutions, standards, and reagents as well as maintaining the group’s chemicals and consumables inventories.

Conduct data and statistical analysis with timely documentation, reporting and archiving of results.

Perform analytical method development, optimization, validation, and troubleshooting using HPLC, LC/MS and GC etc.

Maintain instruments at optimum performance through routine maintenance and QA/QC procedures to foster a clean, sanitary, organized and safe workplace.

Troubleshoot analytical equipment as needed, coordinate with equipment service providers, and resolve equipment issues efficiently to minimize equipment downtime.

Support multiple internal and external projects with chemistry services, and ensure that results and conclusions are communicated clearly.

Develop and write SOPs and update as required.

Be a champion for rigorous science, and proactively educate and learn from others.

THE EXPERIENCE YOU WILL NEED

BS in Chemistry or related field with 0-2 years of analytical chemistry experience in an academic/industrial research lab setting.

Expertise in analytical assays including HPLC, LCMS, GC, GCMS, and column chromatography.

Experience analyzing quantitative data, determining the accuracy and precision of measurements, and preparing final data reports.

Knowledge of extraction, isolation and purification of natural products from plant feedstocks is highly desirable.

Ability to adapt and excel in a rapidly moving environment while prioritizing and working on multiple projects/workloads.

Self-starter with good organizational skills; able to work effectively in cross-functional teams, providing strong analytical, process design, and root cause analysis skills.

Attention to detail that includes a rigorous review of the data and record-keeping.