pWe are seeking an experienced and highly motivated bComputational Chemist /b to support and drive small-molecule drug discovery programs.
The successful candidate will combine strong CADD expertise, structural biology knowledge, and practical experience with AI/ML-enabled molecular design to identify and optimize high-quality chemical starting points.
The role requires a solid foundation in computational chemistry and CADD, together with the ability to integrate structural, chemical and biological data into actionable hypotheses and compound-design strategies.The successful candidate will join our group of Hit and Lead Discovery Group based in Torre Annunziata – Naples.
/p h3Key Responsibilities /h3 ul liSupport hit identification, hit-to-lead and lead optimization activities across different drug discovery programs.
/li liDesign and apply structure-based and ligand-based drug design strategies to support compound identification and optimization.
/li liPlan and execute virtual screening and compound prioritization activities, using appropriate approaches such as molecular docking, similarity searching, pharmacophore modelling and QSAR modeling.
/li liAnalyze and integrate chemical, structural and biological data to interpret structure-activity relationships and guide compound design and prioritization.
/li liApply appropriate computational methods, including molecular modelling and molecular dynamics, to address project-specific scientific questions.
/li liDevelop and implement reproducible computational workflows for data processing, analysis and visualization.
/li liWork closely with medicinal chemists, biologists and other project team members to support data-driven decision-making.
/li liClearly communicate computational results, recommendations and project updates to internal teams and, when appropriate, external partners and clients.
/li /ul h3Qualifications Skills /h3 ul liPh.D.
in Computational Chemistry, Chemistry, Structural Biology, Biophysics, Bioinformatics, or a closely related discipline.
/li liAt least 2-3 years of relevant experience in computational chemistry applied to drug discovery, preferably in an industrial, biotech, pharmaceutical or CRO environment.
/li liGood knowledge and practical experience in structure-based and ligand-based drug design, virtual screening, molecular docking and SAR interpretation; in binding-site analysis, FEP calculations, similarity search, pharmacophore modeling, and QSAR models /li liExperience working with protein structures and protein-ligand complexes, including experimental or predicted structural models.
/li liHands?on experience with one or more commonly used molecular modelling platforms and tools, such as preferably the Schrödinger suite and REINVENT.
/li liAbility to work with chemical and biological datasets and to develop or use reproducible computational workflows.
/li liAbility to implement scalable algorithms and computational workflows for the analysis of large-scale molecular datasets, including clustering, similarity analysis, dimensionality reduction and chemical space exploration.
/li liFamiliarity with Python, R or other programming/scripting languages used for scientific data analysis.
/li liAbility to work effectively in a multidisciplinary drug discovery environment.
/li liFluent English, written and spoken, with good scientific communication skills.
/li /ul h3Nice to Have /h3 ul liAI/ML approaches applied to molecular design and drug discovery, including generative approaches, property prediction or compound prioritization.
/li liAdvanced computational methods such as free-energy calculations, MM-GBSA, FEP, QM calculations or enhanced sampling.
/li liADMET and physicochemical property prediction.
/li liFragment-based drug discovery, covalent inhibitors or targeted protein degradation.
/li liExperience with KNIME, ChemAxon, CDD Vault and Dotmatics.
/li liHands?on experience with MOE, OpenEye, GROMACS, and AMBER or equivalent.
/li liPrevious exposure to client-facing projects, CRO environments or integrated drug discovery programs.
/li liScientific publications, patents or presentations demonstrating contributions to computational drug discovery.
/li /ul h3Personal Attributes /h3 ul liStrong scientific curiosity and problem-solving skills.
/li liA rigorous and data-driven approach.
/li liThe ability to work collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams.
/li liGood interpersonal and communication skills.
/li liEnthusiasm for applying and expanding computational approaches to real drug discovery challenges.
/li /ul h3Axxam is an equal opportunity employer /h3 pAxxam offers a stimulating work environment and a competitive salary.
/p pAxxam S.p.A. /p pOpenzone - via Meucci ********* Bresso (Milano, Italy) /p pFax – /p #J-*****-Ljbffr

📌 Chimico Computazionale (Torre Annunziata)
🏢 Axxam
📍 Torre Annunziata