September 15-19, 2025, 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 Dong An, University of Miami.

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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? 

Yes. I got my BS in chemistry in 2016 at Xiamen University. I got my MS and PhD in chemical engineering at Columbia University in 2018 and 2023 respectively. My PhD works focus on using ultra coarse grain molecular dynamics simulations to probe neurotransmitter release, which fit very well to my postdoc position to study neurotransmitter release by MARTINI coarse grain molecular dynamics simulations. Then I joined Prof. Lindau’s lab in October 2023. 

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

Before I worked on the current field, I had worked on organic synthesis (in BS) and then on soft material (in MS). But I have a strong interest in studying biology related projects, especially understand how a biological process like neurotransmitter release work in molecular details. Unfortunately, I was not chosen by PIs working on web lab but rather by a PI working on dry lab. Because of this, I knew that how charming to understand neurotransmitter release using computational programs to run molecular dynamics simulations, which allowed me to ‘see’ what happens in molecular details in a ~ nm spatial resolution and a ~ ns temporal resolution. Thus, I can understand what happens as a complement way of experiments. 

Daily Work & Routine 

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

In a typical day, I spend one forth of my day setting up, running and downloading my simulations running on Bridges2 cluster. Then I spend half of my day writing Python code to extract and analyze data from simulation trajectories. Then I will report to my PI what new discovery I have found and discuss the next step of the project. In the rest of the day, I read the latest paper from the field and understand what the current state of the field is. 

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

The favorite part of my daily routine is writing programs to analyze data. Because it is the most important and exciting part to verify that what I expect is consistent with the observations in simulations or not. If so, I will write code to extract the data supporting my thoughts. If not, I will think about and discuss with my PI why the results do not fit my expectation and how to explain the results and what I miss during my thinking. 

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

The special part of my day which is not usual is writing proposals or progress reports to apply more computation units on ACCESS Allocations to run more simulations on Bridges2 supercomputer. I write them and ask my PI for his feedback and suggestions. 

Research & Impact 

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

My research projects are to perform multiscale MD simulations to study the SNARE complex-mediated membrane fusion and its regulations by accessory proteins like synaptotagmin and complexin. My work complements experimental research by providing dynamic visualizations of vesicle docking, priming, and fusion in molecular level. Additionally, I develop protein models using both atomistic and coarse-grained (a bead is used to represent several atoms) force fields to quantify protein-protein and protein-lipid interactions with high accuracy over extended timescales. I also analyze computational and experimental data and contribute to scientific publications. Insights from my simulations will not only advance fundamental neuroscience but also have direct implications for developing targeted therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. By making fusion machinery components “druggable,” my research has the potential to lead to new treatment approaches that improve patient outcomes. 

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

The most exciting discovery so far is that our MD simulations characterizing the implications of Syntaxin 1A transmembrane domain (TMD) palmitoylation on its structural dynamics (An et al. 2025, Biophys. J. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2025.05.022). This study was motivated by a recent study from Rosenmund group showing that TMD cysteine residues C271 and C272 are both palmitoylated and these palmitoylation specifically facilitates spontaneous neurotransmitter release (Vardar et al., Syntaxin-1A modulates vesicle fusion in mammalian neurons via juxtamembrane domain dependent palmitoylation of its transmembrane domain, eLife, 11 (2022), Article e78182). Our simulations suggest that palmitoylation of Syntaxin 1A (Stx1A) stabilizes the SNARE domain (SND) in a conformation that favors vesicle docking, priming, and spontaneous neurotransmitter release. This prediction can be experimentally tested using in vitro fluorescence interference contrast (FLIC) microscopy with our experimental collaborator Volker Kiessling. 

Personal Touch 

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

The timeline is the tool for me to balance my life in the lab with that outside of the lab. I will have a plan to do everything in order during workdays and prevent working during weekends. 

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

I will go to a church to talk with people, to study bible to recharge by isolating myself away from work outside the lab. 

10. Any fun lab quirks? 

My papers are my fun “lab quirk”. When I look at how many people visit my papers, I will know how significant my works are, and they give me the power to keep working.  

Advice & Future 

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

My advice is trying your best to learn the basic techniques in your new lab. Then you can start and perusing works which could make you favorite. Do not waste any time during your postdoc, because postdoc is the best time to learn new things, to organize yourself, and to learning how to be a leader in your future career.  

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

My next stage is to become a new PI to start doing research independently.