Research Scientist

Tessering Biosciences is a biotech startup developing small-molecule therapeutics and computational tools to advance women's health. Our approach is precise modulation of nuclear hormone receptor signaling at the tissue and sub-tissue level, enabling tolerable and effective solutions to unmet needs.

Our lead asset is a once-weekly, hormone-free oral contraceptive in lead optimization, a uterine estrogen receptor antagonist that offers a more targeted approach to preventing pregnancy than current oral and hormonal options, with the goal of mitigating side effects while improving convenience. Across our portfolio, we are working to better understand, model, and address the biological differences that contribute to the differential and disproportionate burden of disease experienced by women.

We're looking for an exceptional research scientist to join our founding team and support our preclinical discovery and development programs. If you thrive with high agency, want your work to directly shape a company's trajectory, and are an innovator seeking to bring the frontier of drug development to women's health, this is the opportunity for you.

This role is for someone with gold hands, sharp scientific intuition, and the drive to do what could be the most important work of their career. We are seeking the kind of scientists who live at the most ambitious edge of their field, think across disciplines, and ultimately want to build and lead companies of their own someday.

Core Qualifications

• B.S. in Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Pharmacology, Neuroscience, Biochemistry, or a closely related field, with at least 2 years of hands-on wet lab research experience.
• Exceptional technical execution: precise, reproducible, high-quality data across both in vitro and in vivo platforms.
• Ability to independently design, execute, troubleshoot, and interpret experiments with efficiency and rigor.
• Proficiency across cell-based in vitro assays: reporter gene assays, Western blot, cell proliferation assays, ELISA, qPCR, and immunohistochemistry.
• Experience with rodent surgery and a broad range of in vivo preclinical studies (e.g., ovariectomy, reproductive and general toxicology, fertility and reversibility studies, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamic and behavioral models, uterine and reproductive tissue assessment, and other physiological endpoints).

What Makes You Exceptional

• Publications or reports demonstrating experimental depth in related fields.
• Prior experience setting up or scaling a research lab, workflow, or screening platform.
• Track record of developing and validating novel assays from scratch.
• Prior experience in drug discovery and development.
• Prior experience at a startup or early stage company.
• Familiarity with tissue-selective hormone receptor biology and pharmacology.

What You'll Design / Build / Own

• Support execution of preclinical drug development plans end-to-end (e.g., in vivo protocols, in vitro assays), with a pipeline focus on sex-specific biology.
• Build in-house assay capabilities and SOPs that become core company infrastructure.
• Help establish and manage day-to-day laboratory operations, including equipment, reagents, cell culture, and experimental planning.
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to coordinate studies and advance research programs.
• We move fast and focus on what matters most, taking smart risks and learning quickly from the data.
• We are resourceful and scrappy, doing more with less and finding creative ways around obstacles.
• We thrive in ambiguity and are energized by tackling complex, undefined problems.
• We are mission-driven and relentless about improving outcomes for patients.

What We Offer

Compensation & Equity

• Founding-team-level equity and substantial long-term upside; cash compensation aligned with pre-seed/seed stage, growing as the company grows.
• Co-author publication support.
• Professional development budget for conferences, courses, and continuous learning.

Impact & Growth

• Shape a category-defining company from the earliest stage with maximum ownership.
• Learn and engage with world-class advisors, clinicians, and researchers, build an unparalleled network.
• Directly impact seminal, underserved areas of women's health.

Every single application is reviewed by a real human. We'd like to hear from one, too. We request that you be thoughtful in the materials you send our way: life is too short to read AI slop.

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