{"id":3891438,"url":"https://alion.io/job/pliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry","title":"Associate Scientist I, Biochemistry","company":{"id":3780389,"name":"PliantRX","domain":"pliantrx.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/pliantrx","size_band":null,"is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":null},"role":"Biotech","role_family":"Biotech","seniority":"junior","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["South San Francisco, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":125000,"max":138000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":138000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":7,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Cell Culture","optional":false},{"name":"GraphPad Prism","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-06T20:22:50Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-06","last_verified_at":"2026-11-10T04:06:13Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":3,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":3},"description":"At Pliant, we believe differentiated science can make a meaningful impact. We see our success as a direct result of the central role that each team member plays in advancing our mission to develop therapies that target the disease at its source. We are seeking creative, curious and collaborative individuals who dare to succeed, are committed to making an important impact on patient’s lives and will help us build one Pliant!\nDescription\nWe are seeking an Associate Scientist I to develop, optimize and run biochemical binding assays that screen compounds in medium- to high-throughput format. You will own AlphaScreen/AlphaLISA assays from reagent qualification through routine screening, generating the potency and selectivity data that drive our medicinal chemistry decisions. This is a hands-on laboratory role reporting to Senior Vice President, Research based in South San Francisco.\nResponsibilities\nDesign, develop and optimize biochemical binding assays, with a focus on AlphaScreen/AlphaLISA proximity formats (e.g., protein-protein and protein-ligand interaction and competition assays).\nOptimize assay conditions - bead and reagent titrations, cross-titration of binding partners, buffer, DMSO tolerance, incubation time and light/temperature sensitivity - to deliver robust signal windows.\nSupport cell-based assays, including mammalian cell culture, plating and compound treatment, cell density and workflow optimization, acquire and analyze images on high-content imaging systems.\nMiniaturize and transfer assays to 384- and 1536-well formats; validate them for screening using Z′, signal-to-background, CV and reference-compound reproducibility.\nExecute medium- to high-throughput screening campaigns and dose-response (IC50/EC50) profiling to support hit identification and SAR.\nIdentify and triage assay interference (e.g., singlet-oxygen quenchers, color quenchers, biotin mimetics, metal chelators) using counter-screens and orthogonal formats.\nManage compound and sample workflows, including plate preparation and retrieval from automated sample storage systems.\nAnalyze, QC and report data in Scilligence; maintain complete, contemporaneous ELN records.\nWrite and maintain SOPs and assay reports; present results and issues clearly at project team meetings.\nQualify critical reagents (proteins, antibodies, tagged constructs) in partnership with protein sciences, and track lot-to-lot performance.\nQualifications\nTo perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, abilities, and prior experience required.\nBS in Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry or a related field with 7+ years of relevant biopharmaceutical industry experience, or an MS with 5+ years.\nDirect, hands-on experience developing and running AlphaScreen and/or AlphaLISA assays, including troubleshooting signal window, hook effect and compound interference.\nDemonstrated track record of developing and validating biochemical binding assays for medium- to high-throughput screening in 384- and/or 1536-well formats.\nProficiency with liquid handlers and plate-based workflows (e.g., i5 BIOMEK, Tempest or similar) and multimode plate readers capable of Alpha detection (e.g., EnVision, PHERAstar).\nFamiliarity with high-content imaging equipment such as the Operetta CLS.\nSound understanding of binding kinetics and pharmacology: Kd, Ki, IC50, Cheng-Prusoff, and the assumptions behind them.\nStrong data analysis skills, including curve fitting and assay statistics (e.g., GraphPad Prism, Genedata Screener or equivalent).\nExcellent documentation practices in an electronic lab notebook.\nExperience with cell culture and cell-based assays supporting drug screening.\nStrong attention to detail and scientific rigor, including catching data-quality issues early and questioning unexpected results before reporting them.\nProactive, transparent communicator who works independently day to day while collaborating closely with chemistry and biology teams.\nRequired Qualifications\nExperience operating and maintaining automated compound/sample storage systems (e.g., Brooks/Azenta, Hamilton Storage, or similar), including inventory management, cherry-picking and plate reformatting.\nExperience with orthogonal binding and proximity formats - HTRF/TR-FRET, fluorescence polarization, SPR or BLI - for hit confirmation.\nExperience with integrated robotic screening systems and scheduling software.\nExperience screening against integrins, other cell-surface receptors or protein-protein interaction targets.\nScripting or automation skills for data processing (e.g., Python, R, or KNIME).\nThe annual base salary for this role is $125K - $138K. Individual pay may vary based on additional factors, including, and without limitation job-related skills, experience, work location and relevant education or training. Pliant’s compensation package also includes benefits, equity, and annual target bonus for fulltime positions.\nTo understand how Pliant complies with and manages your personal information with respect to the California Consumer Privacy Act, please visit https://pliantrx.com/ccpa-applicant-and-staff-privacy-notice/.","description_format":"text","description_chars":5220,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":7,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity"],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Drug Discovery"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-06T21:31:31Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"adverts_offering_sponsorship_24m":0,"sanctioned_now":false,"evidence":"Filed H-1B visas in the last two years","filings_12m":0,"filings_prev_12m":2,"green_card_filings_12m":0,"median_offered_wage_usd":null,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-11-09T07:32:21+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)"],"filings_for_role_12m":0}],"liveness":{"score":95,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.946,"p_room":1,"age_days":2,"expected_fill_days":22,"reasons":["conf:2","urgency","win:early","comp:junior"],"computed_at":"2026-11-09T06:03:00Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":138000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/pliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/pliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-10T04:39:11Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":10832,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-11T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":3780389},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=3780389"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fpliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":2,"usd":0.2},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fpliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fpliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/pliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fpliantrx-associate-scientist-i-biochemistry"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":3891438}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"pliantrx.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":3891438},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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