Who we are

Turtletree Labs is a biotechnology start-up that provides sustainable solutions to global food and ecological challenges. Our company utilizes cell-based technology and precision fermentation to produce milk and milk components with a simple but guiding purpose: to nourish our people and protect our planet in the most sustainable way possible. As a start-up, we offer a dynamic and fast-paced work environment, where you will have the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on our mission to advance protein research and development. Our R&D team consists of experienced scientists who are passionate about pushing the boundaries of protein science and technology.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop genetic tools for strain engineering works.
• Construct and express vectors for different expression systems, with a strong focus in yeast and fungi.
• Knowledge of computation tools and models for simulation to generate a wide range of variants for screening.
• Develop and optimize microbial fermentation processes while supervising strain screening and daily. bioprocess
• operations for the production of recombinant proteins, lipids and enzymes with the goal of industrial production scale-up.
• Perform data analysis to develop understanding of the tradeoffs between process parameters and key performance indicators.
• Provide technical justification for novel concepts, approaches and anticipate potential problems and design preventive and innovative solutions.
• Maintain a high awareness of production processes and be proactive in introducing improvements for product yield or quality.
• Collaborate with R&D and bioprocessing team to transfer technology from research lab to bioprocess development unit.
• Maintain an advanced level of documentation and communication through timely and thorough drafting and execution of protocols, reports, and experimental summaries in support of protein bioprocess development.
• Develop a deep understanding of the bioprocess landscape especially related to technologies and equipment at industrial scale manufacturing.
• Any other assigned task as required.

Who you are:

• Sense of purpose and motivation from developing biological systems for delivering sustainable solutions.
• Enjoys working at the bench to develop and demonstrate new protocols and technology.
• Creative and innovative approach to troubleshooting and strain engineering.
• Strong organization, analytic and communication skills to guide the R&D efforts towards successful outcomes.
• Willingness to propose, test and implement new ways of working to improve current processes in the lab and in project management.

Technical Requirements:

• Experience with standard molecular biology techniques for microbial strain engineering (DNA construct design, transformation, strain selection, and genetic characterization of strains).
• Experience with standard techniques for strain performance testing (cultivation methodologies, assays for protein detection including SDS-PAGE, Western, ELISA, BCA and other basic assays).
• Experience using standard molecular biology tools for the genetic engineering of a variety of hosts and model organisms, specifically including yeast and bacteria. Academic and applied knowledge of the different tools and techniques that are used for different host systems and their limitations.
• Experience with Benchling and JMP or other similar software for data capture and analysis.
• Experienced using automation to improve the efficiency of standard strain engineering processes, as well as developing and testing new workflows.
• Experience working independently to propose and execute on experimental designs to test hypotheses. Reviewing and presenting results to guide decision making and proposing next steps.
• Experience and interest in reviewing literature and patents to stay current in the field. Using this information to guide R&D towards innovation.

Education / Work Experience Requirements:

Master Degree in Microbiology, Genetics, Biology, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Botany/Plant Biology, Biotechnology, Biochemistry or similar and + 3 yrs of relevant industry experience

Work Environment and Physical Requirements:

This job operates in a professional laboratory environment. It is 100% on site, expect to spend the majority of the time (80%+) in the lab. Must be able to fulfill the following physical requirements, with or without reasonable accommodation:

• Climbing stairs
• Lift up to 20 pounds, unassisted
• Regularly sit / speak / hear
• Perform climbing, standing, stooping, twisting, lifting, pipetting, and other physical movements.

Location:

TurtleTree laboratories are located in Woodland, CA.

Work Authorization

US work authorization is required, this position is not eligible for sponsorship

Relocation Offered

No