Informatics Specialist
About Vernalis
Working within our fully equipped research laboratories in Cambridge, our established group of scientists are world leaders in fragment and structure-based drug discovery.
Our scientists develop and apply fragment and structure-based methods to solve problems in drug discovery and have generated cell active lead compounds and development candidates against targets in oncology, neurodegeneration, anti-infectives and inflammation.
The Role – Job Summary
As an Informatics Specialist, you will deliver, optimise and support chemical and biological information systems used by our Cambridge-based Research group. The role of Informatics Specialist is ideally suited to drug discovery scientists who love coding and implementing new software tools and database developers who are passionate about working with chemical structure databases.
Key responsibilities
· Maintain and develop discovery research databases
· Collaborate with key scientific personnel to develop and rollout new scientific information systems and reporting tools
· Assist in the development and maintenance of our compound registration system, providing expert advice to chemists.
· Maintain protocols within ActivityBase; provide and implement updates, new studies, and protocols according to end-user requirements
· Implement improvements in template design and design new templates for use in assays and HTS screening through liaison with end-users in Chemistry and Biology
· Assist in the development and maintenance of our LIMS and electronic lab notebooks and their integration
· Lead the support of our Mosaic inventory management system
· Train end-users
· Work with IT to ensure the availability of reporting tools and applications to aid workflows
· Extract and manage data, such as legacy data and commercial chemical libraries to incorporate within a data warehouse
· Administer scientific database systems, e.g. data dictionary maintenance
Knowledge & Experience
Essential:
· Proficient in Python (especially for data science – including pandas, numpy)
· Experienced in API usage of a cheminformatics package (preferably RDKit)
· A background in relational database development (specific Oracle experience preferred) – schema design, data warehousing, ETL in a scientific environment
· An understanding of biological assay data, including considerations of quality control and data storage
· Experienced in the use of data pipelining tools (for example KNIME or Pipeline Pilot)
· An active awareness of new and developing technologies
Desirable:
· Experience of working in a drug discovery research environment
· Experience in template development within an Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN) system
· Familiarity with CI/CD approach to application deployment with Docker or Kubernetes
· Experience working with cloud technologies – AWS S3, Athena/glue/etc
· Web development experience (JavaScript, HTML/CSS)
· Experience in full stack web development using Node and/or Spring Boot, React
Skills and competencies
Essential:
· Strong communication and presentation skills
· Ability to work independently and as a team working collaboratively with others
· Proactive in identifying and troubleshooting potential obstacles and ability to plan ahead
· Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills
· Reliable, professional, and conscientious attitude
Education & Qualifications
Essential:
· Qualified to at least BSc/MSc in a relevant scientific discipline, with professional experience in a scientific research environment
Desirable:
· PhD or other postgraduate qualification
· Relevant industrial experience in the biotech / pharma sector
Why Vernalis?
At Vernalis you will be part of ‘One Team’ working in a friendly and collaborative office.
We offer a comprehensive range of benefits including generous pension contributions, private healthcare cover, 26 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, holiday purchase scheme, Flexitime, discretionary bonus, employee assistance programme and enhanced family leave policies.
If you feel passionate about joining a team where scientific excellence and enthusiasm combine in a friendly and flexible environment to impact drug discovery projects, then please get in touch!
To apply please send across your CV to: HR@vernalis.com
Vernalis Research is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community – a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit.