Postdoc Appreciation Week Spotlight: Greeshma Jain

September 21-25, 2026, is National Postdoc Appreciation Week. Since 2009, the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) has sponsored this annual celebration to recognize the significant contributions that postdoctoral scholars make to research and scientific discovery. Check out the NPA website to view the virtual and in-person events being held this week. 

This week, BPS will be highlighting postdoc members on the blog. Today, read about Greeshma Jain, University of Florida.

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Background & Inspiration 

1. Can you tell us a little about your background and what brought you to your current postdoc position? 

I come from Bhopal, a city in India with comparatively fewer research opportunities, and studied at a college that didn't have much in the way of research facilities. Still, I made the most of what was available and stayed determined to learn as much as I could. During my degree, I got the opportunity to do a six-month internship at any institute in India, and after successfully clearing the interview, I landed one at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB) - a place with far more resources than I was used to. That's where I truly discovered how much I loved research. I'd always been a curious child who questioned everything, but it was the research atmosphere at IIT that really opened my eyes to what a career in science could look like.

After my master's, I continued down that path by joining the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Hyderabad, as a research fellow, where I became interested in solid-state NMR (ssNMR) and decided I wanted to pursue a PhD in this field in Europe. In 2019, I got a PhD position at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, where I was working on the structure and aggregation mechanism of huntingtin fibrils using ssNMR.

In 2024, I attended the Biophysical Society (BPS) conference in Philadelphia, where I met my first postdoc supervisor. He was looking for a postdoc; I was looking for a position, and it clicked. I moved to the US in 2025 to join the Chemistry Department at the University of Florida. It was a big shift in focus: instead of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs), I started learning about GPCRs and membrane proteins. Due to funding constraints, I switched groups earlier this year, and I now work on membrane proteins and ion channels while training in cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). My goal is to build hands-on expertise in two powerful structural techniques: NMR and cryo-EM.

2. What inspired you to pursue research in your field? 

During my master's internship, I worked on proteins related to diabetes, and that's when my interest in proteins and how their structure relates to disease really took hold. After my master’s, I worked as a research fellow, where I worked on p53 amyloids and their structure determination through ssNMR. That curiosity led me to pursue a PhD in ssNMR, where I focused on disordered proteins. I find the study of amyloids and protein aggregation fascinating, especially their relevance to diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's.

After my PhD, I wanted to broaden my skill set, which is what drew me to membrane protein research for my postdoc. It's also given me the chance to dive deeper into biology more broadly, working with insect and mammalian cell systems, and to pick up a new structural technique in cryo-EM.

Daily Work & Routine 

3. What does a typical day look like for you as a postdoc? 

My day always starts with coffee - it helps my brain get into gear. Beyond that, my schedule varies depending on the week. Mondays and Fridays are especially important since I'm responsible for maintaining our insect cell lines. Weeks when I need to prepare my protein sample tend to be busier and more high-stakes. I usually start by checking my task list for the week, which might include a short protein expression prep, buffer preparation, or general lab duties.

4. Do you have a favorite part of your daily routine—or a task you look forward to most? 

I genuinely enjoy being in the lab and learning new things, so I wouldn't call any of it routine. What I look forward to most is optimizing experiments, whether that's protein expression or purification. I like the challenge of troubleshooting and refining protocols to improve yield; it keeps things interesting. 

5. What’s one part of your day that people might find surprising or unexpected? 

I think living in the Netherlands rubbed off on me more than I realized, as I tend to be quite direct, which sometimes catches people off guard here. Also, after moving to the US, I kept walking to the office, and my colleagues found that surprising. Coming from the Netherlands, a 2- to 30-minute walk felt completely normal to me!

Research & Impact 

6. Can you briefly describe your research project and why it matters? 

My research focuses on a calcium-permeable ion channel called TRPM3, which plays a key role in pain sensation, inflammation, metabolism, and neuronal signaling. When TRPM3 doesn't work properly, it's been linked to a range of diseases, including neurodegenerative, cardiovascular, kidney, and respiratory conditions, thus making it a promising target for drug development. The gap in the field is that no one has been able to capture the “open” state of TRPM3 (active conformation). One likely reason is that previous studies relied on detergents/ micelles, which don’t reflect the ion channel’s natural membrane environment. Without knowing the conformation of the open state, it’s difficult to design effective drugs that target it. 

So, my project addresses this gap by studying TRPM3 in plasma membrane-derived vesicles instead of detergent, i.e., keeping the channel in a much more natural, cell-like lipid environment. If we’re able to capture the open-state structure of TRPM3 in this native-like setting, we can understand how a signaling protein called Gβγ inhibits TRPM3 activity, which is important for how our bodies regulate pain signaling. Together, this work should give us a much clearer picture of how this channel switches between active and inactive states, and why that matters for diseases where it goes wrong.

7. What’s the most exciting discovery or moment you’ve had during your postdoc so far? 

Before applying this method to TRPM3, I tested it as a proof of concept on a different membrane protein to see if structural studies in plasma membrane-derived vesicles (instead of detergent) would work the way we hoped. After completing this step and seeing the results, it was a genuinely exciting moment for me. It gave me real confidence that this approach could succeed for TRPM3 as well, and it's what's keeping me hopeful and motivated as I move forward with capturing that open-state structure.

Personal Touch 

8. How do you balance life in the lab with life outside of it? 

Living in Europe really taught me the value of work-life balance, and I think I've managed to hold onto that. I get to the lab in the morning and try to wrap up everything by evening. Once I'm home, I cook dinner with my husband, spend quality time together, take care of household chores, and go to the gym. I make it a point to give time to my personal life rather than let everything revolve around work. Especially after stressful preps, I like to take a proper break before returning to work; I find I'm actually more efficient that way.

9. What hobbies or activities help you recharge after work? 

I love traveling, so my partner and I often just drive off to nearby cities or towns over the weekend. I also love dancing and drawing, and I always make time for both. Sometimes, winding down with a good web series or movie does the trick too.  

10. Any fun lab quirks? 

Definitely music. I put on my headphones, play something nice (mostly Bollywood), and work whenever I can with it playing in the background.

Advice & Future 

11. What advice would you give to someone just starting a postdoc? 

Think carefully about whether pursuing a postdoc is really right for you and be clear on whether you want to stay on the academic path or move towards a career in industry. Choose work that genuinely excites you. I also think some people assume it's hard to switch fields during a postdoc, since you build so much depth in your field during your PhD, but honestly, it's exciting, and research is fundamentally about learning new things, so don't be afraid to make that shift. Beyond the project itself, choose a good supervisor. Having a good mentor matters immensely and goes a long way in shaping your career.

12. Where do you see yourself heading next in your career? 

I love doing research, and that's actually what first drew me towards industry. But recently, after meeting a few professors in academia, I've become open to staying in academic research too - particularly at research institutes where I can focus primarily on research rather than teaching. Ultimately, my goal is simple: to keep doing research, whether that ends up being in academia or industry.