Medicinal Chemist Drug Discovery Antiinfectives (m/f/div) #02/2026

The position is initially limited to two years.

You will play a key role in the further development of our anti-infectives pipeline and contribute to the discovery and development of new small molecule therapeutics and biologics. In a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment, you will have the opportunity to actively advance medicinal chemistry strategies from hit identification to clinical candidate selection.

What you can expect: 

• Your work will focus on target-based research into new antiinfective agents (antibiotics, antifungals and antiviral substances). This includes the development, synthesis and optimisation of biologically active small molecules with an antimicrobial spectrum of activity. Experience in the development of biologics is also welcome.
• You will play a key role in a cross-functional project team that ensures the successful delivery of hits and lead compounds for preclinical and clinical studies.
• In constant communication with medicinal chemists, you will analyse complex data sets to establish structure-activity relationships (SAR) and structure-property relationships (SPR) for small molecules and apply data-driven insights to improve molecular properties.
• You will explore new chemical modalities to improve therapeutic potential.
• You will efficiently organise a medicinal chemistry laboratory, manage scientific staff and supervise daily operations.
• You are responsible for maintaining high scientific standards and are willing to continuously expand your expertise in the fields of medicinal chemistry and anti-infectives.
• You communicate with service providers in the industry and organise contract measurements and method transfers.

• Above-average degree and doctorate in synthetic organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, natural product chemistry or related fields with a focus on biophysical medicinal chemistry (e.g. pharmacy, pharmaceutical chemistry, etc.)
• At least 2 years of experience in managing projects in the field of medicinal chemistry and experience with target- and ligand-based approaches in drug discovery
• Good knowledge of modern synthetic methods, purification of compounds and structural characterisation
• A solid understanding of drug discovery and development, including biology, ADME, and drug safety considerations
• Excellent knowledge and experience in performing biophysical assays for characterising drug-target interactions using SPR and fluorescence-based technologies, as well as NMR and X-ray
• Good understanding of the chemistry of small molecules
• Knowledge in the field of fragment-based drug discovery is an advantage
• Creativity and strategic thinking to drive innovation in medicinal chemistry and promote interdisciplinary collaboration
• Goal-oriented communication style, strong initiative, determination and ability to work in a team
• Very good command of written and spoken English

The following experience is an advantage:

• Experience with functional tests in cell-free and whole-cell systems, antibacterial and antifungal tests, including tests to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (according to EUCAST)
• Experience with the development of enzymatic assays

The Transfer Group Antiinfectives investigates promising target structures of infection-relevant pathogens with regard to the development of new natural product-based or synthetic active substances. The Leibniz-HKI is located in the ‘science city’ of Jena on the Beutenberg Campus and is part of the ‘Balance of the Microverse’ cluster of excellence. 

As Thuringia's economic centre, Jena offers an attractive environment in the ‘green heart’ of Germany with extensive leisure and cultural activities as well as career prospects. With us you will find:

• An application-oriented and challenging field of activity with a high degree of personal responsibility in a committed and innovation-oriented team.
• An excellent laboratory infrastructure
• Remuneration in accordance with the collective agreement for the public sector of the federal states (TV-L, full-time) as well as extensive qualification opportunities

Leibniz-HKI is an equal opportunity employer that promotes diversity and inclusion in the workplace. It strives to increase the proportion of underrepresented groups with equal qualifications. We value diversity and therefore welcome all applications, regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion/belief, disability, age, sexual orientation and identity.

Please submit your complete application documents (cover letter, CV, previous work, letters of recommendation, references) via the Leibniz-HKI application portal. The call for applications ends on the 28^th of Febuary 2026, but applications received after this date may still be considered until the position is filled.