Etiome: Translational Biology / Target Validation Co-Op

Location: Cambridge, MA USA Department: Co-Ops & Internships

This position is open exclusively to current Northeastern University Co-Op students.

Work Period: January 2027 to June 2027. This is a full - time, 40 hours per week position with 5 days in office.

About Etiome, Inc.

Etiome is a privately held, early-stage biotechnology company advancing a proprietary Temporal Biodynamics platform to identify and discover novel drug targets and enable biomarkers for chronic and progressive diseases—ensuring the right patient receives the right treatment at the right time. Etiome is a product of Flagship Pioneering’s venture creation engine, which has also given rise to companies such as Moderna Therapeutics, Editas Medicine, Omega Therapeutics, Seres Therapeutics, and Indigo Agriculture.

About Flagship Pioneering

Etiome, Inc. was founded by Flagship Pioneering's venture creation engine that invents and builds platform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health or sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $90 billion in aggregate value. Many of the company’s Flagship has founded have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving human health, preempting illness, and feeding the world by improving the resiliency and sustainability of agriculture. Flagship has been recognized twice on FORTUNE’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies and has been twice named to Fast Company’s annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Learn more about Flagship at www.flagshippioneering.com.

Flagship Pioneering Co-Op Program

Welcome to Flagship Pioneering Co-Op Program for the cohort dreaming big and taking courageous leaps. You'll join fellow peers across our ecosystem of companies and learning firsthand how we build first-in-category companies. You’ll have access to enrichment sessions, a dedicated professional development track, and a mentor that help guide you toward your next step. By the end, you will carry on a meaningful project outcome, a genuine network, and a front-row view of how Flagship pioneer new ventures that change the world.

Position Summary

We are seeking a highly motivated graduate-level Co-op student to join our Biology team and contribute to the experimental validation of novel therapeutic targets identified through Etiome’sTemporal Biodynamics platform. The successful candidate will work closely with scientists to develop and execute disease-relevant in vitro assays, evaluate therapeutic hypotheses, and generate mechanistic data supporting target validation and drug discovery programs. The position will provide hands-on experience at the interface of human disease biology, functional genomics, translational biology, and drug discovery.

Key Responsibilities

Design and execute disease-relevant cell-based experiments to evaluate novel therapeutic targets and biological hypotheses.

Perform mammalian cell culture using established cell lines and/or primary human cells, including cell maintenance, experimental treatment, perturbation, and sample collection.

Support functional target validation, potentially including gene knockdown or other target-perturbation approaches.

Develop, optimize, and troubleshoot in vitro assays and experimental conditions to model disease-relevant biological processes.

Perform molecular and cellular biology techniques including: RNA isolation, cDNA synthesis, qPCR, ELISA and MSD-based immunoassays

Additional biochemical or imaging-based assays depending on project needs

Analyze and interpret experimental results using appropriate quantitative approaches and relate findings to the underlying biological hypothesis.

Perform literature reviews to support experimental design, pathway analysis, target biology, and interpretation of results.

Integrate results across multiple experimental readouts to help determine whether targets meet predefined validation criteria.

Maintain detailed and accurate experimental records in electronic laboratory notebooks and organize datasets for downstream analysis.

Present experimental results and conclusions during Biology team and project meetings.

Key requirements

Currently enrolled in an undergraduate or master program in Biology, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Biomedical Engineering, Pharmacology, or a related discipline.

Strong foundation in molecular and cellular biology with hands-on laboratory research or a prior co-op experience.

Experience with mammalian cell culture; experience working with primary human cells is a plus. Hands-on experience with one or more of the following:

qPCR

RNA/DNA isolation

ELISA or other immunoassays

Western blotting

Cell-based functional assays

Microscopy or quantitative imaging

Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot experiments and critically evaluate experimental results.

Strong attention to detail and commitment to rigorous, reproducible experimental work.

Excellent organizational, documentation, and communication skills. Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced research environment.

Preferred qualifications

Previous research experience in disease biology, functional genomics, target validation, or drug discovery.

Experience with gene perturbation approaches such as siRNA, CRISPR, or related technologies.

Experience developing or optimizing cell-based assays.

Experience working with cell culture

What You Will Gain

During the co-op, the candidate will have the opportunity to:

Experience how human biological datasets are translated into therapeutic hypotheses and novel drug targets.

Participate in target validation programs from experim