Senior Scientist, Safety Assessment & Investigative Toxicology
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Overview
Job Description
Centessa Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, is a clinical-stage company developing orexin receptor 2 (OX2R) agonists as a new class of medicines for the treatment of narcolepsy and potentially other sleep-wake disorders. Centessa’s lead investigational candidate – cleminorexton (formerly ORX750) – is being developed for narcolepsy type 1, narcolepsy type 2, and idiopathic hypersomnia. Centessa's OX2R agonist portfolio includes additional clinical and preclinical-stage assets with potential utility across a broader range of neurological, neurodegenerative, and neuropsychiatric conditions.
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Centessa was recognized as a Great Place to Work® in 2026.
Description of Role
We are seeking an analytically elite, strategically minded Senior Scientist to join our Safety Assessment team. This is a 100% non-laboratory position designed for a seasoned bioscientist or toxicology operations expert who thrives at the intersection of dataset auditing, mechanistic evaluation, and cross-functional project leadership.
As a Senior Scientist, you will serve as a vital scientific and strategic hub connecting Centessa’s internal toxicology leaders with Project Development Teams (PDTs) and adjacent disciplines (including DMPK, CMC, Regulatory, and Clinical Operations). You will own the analytical pipeline for incoming toxicology studies—spearheading the audit of regulatory SEND datasets, engineering data visualizations of complex toxicology endpoints, and authoring authoritative literature reviews. Your insights will directly shape investigative toxicology strategies, driving early pipeline decision-making and securing project endorsements at internal governance committees.
Key Responsibilities
- Advanced Data Visualization & Analytics: Lead the architectural design and execution of data models that transform raw, multi-dose toxicology data streams, clinical pathology tables, and safety pharmacology metrics into publication-ready visual tools (e.g., exposure-margin heatmaps, benchmark dose plots, and cumulative trend diagnostics) to clearly define therapeutic windows.
- SEND Strategy & Regulatory Auditing: Oversee the review and quality control of incoming Standard for the Exchange of Nonclinical Data (SEND) datasets from CRO vendors. Ensure absolute compliance, schema validation, and exact data alignment with finalized nonclinical study reports prior to regulatory filing and archival.
- Mechanistic Synthesis & Literature Architecture: Conduct rigorous, comprehensive scientific literature investigations to proactively assess target-mediated or chemotype-specific safety risks. Synthesize complex, ambiguous biological data into clear, actionable technical memos that inform investigative toxicity strategies.
- PDT & Governance Leadership: Partner closely with Toxicology Leads to co-author high-impact data packages, briefing books, and executive slide decks. Actively participate in defending safety strategies and securing program endorsements within Project Development Teams (PDTs) and formal internal governance panels.
- Cross-Functional Synergy: Act as a senior scientific liaison between Safety Assessment, CMC (for compound inventory tracking), DMPK (for toxicokinetic integration), and Project Management to ensure nonclinical safety deliverables map smoothly to aggressive global project milestones.
Qualifications
- Education: B.S. or M.S. degree in Toxicology, Pharmacology, Cellular/Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related life sciences discipline.
- Experience Required:
- With an M.S. degree:6–8+ years of highly relevant biotechnology, pharmaceutical, or tier-one CRO industry experience.
- With a B.S. degree:8–10+ years of extensive industrial drug-development, data management, and toxicology operations experience.
- Core Technical Competencies:
- Expert-level understanding of preclinical toxicology datasets, histopathology reporting structures, and study designs.
- Hands-on proficiency auditing, validating, or working directly with regulatory SEND data structures.
- Advanced capability utilizing scientific data software to build complex data structures (e.g., GraphPad Prism, Spotfire, Excel macros, or specialized Python/R data visual tools).
- Leadership & Influence: Superb technical writing skills paired with a demonstrated ability to distill vast pools of complex data into clear arguments capable of convincing diverse, cross-functional scientific leaders.
Compensation
The annual base salary range for this position is $85,000 to $130,000. Individual compensation within this range will be determined based on a variety of factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge and location.
In addition to base pay, this role is eligible for a discretionary annual bonus. The Company also offers a comprehensive benefits package, which includes a 401(k) plan, company-sponsored medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, generous paid time off, and a health and wellness program.
Work Location
This role is remote and based in the US, with occasional travel.
POSITION: Full-Time, Exempt
EEOC Statement: Centessa Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subdisary of Eli Lilly and Company believes in a diverse environment and is committed to equal employment opportunity for all its employees and qualified applicants. We do not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, promotion, or any other employment practices for reasons of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, marital or veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status. We will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with known disabilities, in accordance with applicable law.
Please note: We will not assign referral rights for any unsolicited resumes from recruitment agencies.
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