Molecular Biologist

About the Role:

As a Molecular Biologist at Pilgrim, you’ll develop sample preparation, qPCR, and sequencing methods for ARGUS. You’ll design and run experiments to improve nucleic acid recovery, assay performance, and sequencing quality in complex environmental and low-input samples. You’ll turn those findings into validated protocols for reliable biological detection in the field.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and optimize sample preparation methods, including lysis, nucleic acid extraction, purification, and concentration of environmental samples.
• Develop qPCR assays, including primer and probe selection, assay controls, and tests for inhibition and contamination.
• Optimize sequencing workflows, including library preparation, sequencing, and quality control for low-input and complex samples.
• Design and run controlled experiments to measure recovery, detection limits, specificity, and repeatability across sample types and input levels.
• Investigate unexpected findings with Bioinformatics, including contamination, preparation bias, and discrepancies between qPCR and sequencing results.
• Define reagent and handling requirements for validated methods and support their transfer to ARGUS with Systems Integration.
• Write and maintain protocols and experimental records, including method changes, reagent details, and results.

Qualifications:

• Strong foundation in molecular biology, microbiology, genomics, or a related field. MS or PhD is a plus, not required.
• Hands-on experience with nucleic acid extraction, qPCR, sequencing library preparation, and sequencing quality control.
• Advanced command of standard wet-lab equipment, instrumentation, and molecular biology techniques.
• Experience writing reproducible protocols and transferring methods to other researchers or laboratory teams.

Preferred:

• Experience with low-input or environmental samples, bioaerosols, metagenomics, or nanopore sequencing.