Data Scientist, Machine Learning
About Avista Therapeutics
Avista Therapeutics is a biotechnology startup company backed by UPMC Enterprises that is developing innovative gene therapies on a high-throughput scale, leveraging our single cell platform scAAVengr to identify top-performing AAV variants and directly translating our findings into clinical applications. Our goal is to restore vision to those with various forms of inherited retinal disease by using highly efficient and cell type-specific AAV vectors.
About the Role
As a Data Scientist, you will join the bioinformatics team for an exciting opportunity to develop new computational methods to advance AAV gene therapies. The ideal candidate will have a background in machine learning and statistics. Job duties will include algorithm development, statistical modeling, pipeline development and experimental design. The candidate must be comfortable with analyzing single cell data and knowledgeable about current best practices for handling sequencing data. The candidate must be adaptable and willing to take on new projects, and have a propensity to work well in an interdisciplinary team environment. This is a highly dynamic role that is focused on constant innovation and bringing new ideas to the table.
Job Responsibilities
Contribute to computational platform with in-house algorithm development to improve identification and analysis of AAV gene therapy candidates, with a primary focus on building machine learning models
Identify and implement workflow improvements, including statistical modeling techniques and correction methods
Collaborate with computational biologists to build and improve the pipeline by staying up-to-date on the latest single cell methodologies and integrating new bioinformatics tools
Work closely with both wet lab and dry lab scientists to identify sequencing needs and determine best plan of action
Analyze various large-scale datasets (scRNA-seq/scATAC-seq) and report findings with a deep understanding of both the molecular biology variables and clinical applications
Qualifications
PhD/Master’s degree (or equivalent industry experience) in Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Computer Science, or relevant field
4+ years of relevant lab/work experience
Expertise in NGS and best practices for analysis
Expertise in machine learning and statistical modeling
Strong understanding of molecular biology as it relates to NGS
Experience with single cell data (scRNA-seq/scATAC-seq)
Comfortable in a dynamic startup environment
Fluency in R/Python
Comfortable using Linux platforms (shell-scripting/running jobs on HPC)
Comfortable with data management
Experience with using Git version control
Experience with large-scale/integrative biological data analysis
Compensation and Benefits
We offer a competitive salary and benefits package, including stock options, medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance and PTO.
Avista Therapeutics is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, pregnancy, marital or partnership status, familial status, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, national origin, veteran status, HIV status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by appropriate federal, state, or local laws.