Research Associate 3/Senior Research Associate 1, Biology (In Vivo)

Who We Are:

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) is a neuroscience-focused biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative therapeutics to improve the lives of people living with neurological and psychiatric disorders. We are looking for great people who thrive in a respectful, collaborative, inclusive, and productive culture to join the Xenon team.

What We Do:

We are advancing an exciting product pipeline to address indications with high unmet medical need, including epilepsy and depression. Our flagship azetukalner program represents the most advanced potassium channel modulator in clinical development for multiple indications. Building upon the positive results and compelling data from our Phase 2b "X-TOLE" study in adult patients with focal epilepsy, our Phase 3 epilepsy program includes multiple clinical trials evaluating azetukalner in patients with focal onset seizures and primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures. In 2024, we are planning to initiate a Phase 3 azetukalner program in major depressive disorder, based on topline data from our Phase 2 "X-NOVA" clinical trial. In addition, we are proud of the leading-edge science coming out of our discovery labs, including early-stage research programs that leverage our extensive ion channel expertise and drug discovery capabilities to identify validated drug targets and develop new product candidates. Backed by a strong balance sheet to support our growth plans, we continue to build a fully integrated, premier neuroscience company with strong discovery, clinical development, corporate, and commercial operations.

About the Role:

We are seeking a Research Associate 3/Senior Research Associate 1, Biology (In Vivo) to join our team. The incumbent will provide technical in vivo support for our preclinical drug discovery projects. The successful candidate will conduct in vivo pharmacology experiments to characterize the pharmacokinetics, efficacy and safety of compounds. We are working in an accredited research facility holding Good Animal Practices (G.A.P.) certification from the Canadian Council on Animal Care (C.C.A.C).

This position reports to the Principal Scientist, Epilepsy and will be in Vancouver, BC, Canada. This role is an on-site lab-based position.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Uphold high standards of animal care in accordance with CCAC guidelines.
• Develop, validate, implement, and complete assays/experiments.
• Administer test compounds by all standard routes and conduct pharmacokinetics studies.
• Conduct studies geared towards evaluating efficacy of drug candidates in animal models, analyze and present data.
• Contribute to and deliver on assigned drug discovery projects to ensure requirements are met and analysis is conducted, in addition to developing new approaches and assays/techniques as needed.
• Review research and scientific data and report discrepancies to other scientists and colleagues as required.
• Interpret results and recommend further studies. Distribute results and analyses following appropriate review; present data and information to the team.
• Participate and contribute to team meetings and other department activities; present results or other key information as needed.
• Interact and collaborate with other functions and colleagues within Discovery to provide status and project updates.
• Write standard operating procedures (SOPs) and reports for presentation of scientific data. Organize and file internal data, protocols, and reports.
• Perform general laboratory maintenance and monitoring.
• Keep up to date and detailed records of experiments and data analysis within an Electronic Lab Notebook system. Ensure experiments are counter-signed on a monthly basis.
• Ensure the laboratory environment is safe and well-organized; follow and keep up to date with Health & Safety policies.
• Act in accordance with Company policies, including, for example, the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and ensure policies are understood and followed by direct reports, if any.
• Other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• BSc degree in a Life Science field or RVT Diploma, with a minimum of 4 years of relevant experience; experience working with rodents in a research environment is required.
• Dedication to high standards of animal welfare.
• Experience conducting basic in vivo procedures, such as animal handling and care, drug administration using various routes, and tissue collection is required.
• Experience evaluating and scoring animal behaviour is an asset.
• Detail-oriented work ethic with good organizational, time management and observational skills.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a team.
• Excellent record keeping and communication skills.
• Ability to exercise mature judgment, discretion and initiative.
• Motivation to become proficient in operating new software programs.

The base salary range for this role is $79,600 to $103,600 CAD; we will consider above this range for exceptional candidates. Base salary is determined by a combination of factors including, but not limited to, education and other qualifications, years of relevant experience, and internal equity.

Our Total Rewards program includes base salary, target bonus, and stock options, as well as a full range of benefits including medical, dental, vision, short-& long-term disability, accidental death & dismemberment, and life insurance programs, Employee Assistance Program, travel insurance, and retirement savings programs with company matching contributions.
Xenon encourages time to rest and re-charge through vacation, personal days, sick days, and an end-of-year company shutdown. Xenon highly values employee development and has an expanding Training, Learning & Development program, including a Tuition Assistance program for advanced degrees.
As part of our hiring process, Xenon conducts background checks for finalist candidates. The types of checks conducted will vary depending on the relevance to the position.
US positions only: Xenon Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. participates in the E-Verify program in all states in which we hire. Learn more about the E-Verify program here.
To apply for this position, click Apply Now to complete the application. We thank all applicants for their interest; however, due to the volume of applicants, only those chosen for interview will be contacted.