In a small farming town called “Itaunja” in India’s Uttar Pradesh state, Anand P. Singh used his tutoring earnings to buy magnets, compasses, prisms, and pendulums. With these simple tools, he was able to explore and conduct experiments that his resource-limited high school couldn’t provide. Today, Singh builds sophisticated light-sheet microscopes to watch proteins diffuse and genes activate in real time, and he’s working to establish biophysics as a recognized field in the Mid-South of the United States, where it is not as strongly established as in other regions. “Biophysics is not yet a recognized field of study or even offered as formal courses in my university,” he explains. His response has been characteristically proactive—organizing the Mid-South Biophysics and Quantitative Biology symposium to build a sustainable regional community.
The foundation for Singh’s experimental approach was laid while earning his master’s degree in chemistry at Banaras Hindu University, where he developed what he calls “a quantitative mindset” through coursework in electrochemistry, chemical kinetics, and spectroscopy. But the turning point came during a rotation at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai, where he encountered Sri Rama Koti Ainavarapu’s work on single-molecule protein biomechanics. “I was amazed to see signatures of single protein folding and unfolding,” Singh recalls, describing the experience of witnessing a custom-built atomic force microscope probe individual motor proteins.
Similarly influential was his exposure to the custom microscopy work of Sudipta Maiti. “Seeing custom-built microscopes, where every single lens, laser, and control unit was systematically assembled to study molecular dynamics in living systems was a turning point for me,” Singh recalls. He decided to pursue graduate studies at the National University of Singapore under Thorsten Wohland, where he built his first light-sheet microscope and developed quantitative methods for measuring protein diffusion and protein-protein interaction maps in living cells.
Singh worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Singapore’s Mechanobiology Institute with Timothy Saunders. “Dr. Saunders had recently established his group there to investigate various aspects of developmental processes in the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) and zebrafish, applying principles of physics to study tissue-level dynamics and mechanics using live-cell imaging and computational tools,” he shares. “In this role, I built my second custom microscope, a digital scanning light-sheet microscope with control software written by a talented PhD student, Shabo Zhang, to image fruit fly embryonic development in detail to study the biomechanics of the nervous system of developing fruit fly embryos.” The work required mastering an entirely new skill set. “During this period, I was fortunate to get trained by a talented and dedicated biology postdoc, Christopher Amourda, on how to identify male versus female flies, set up crosses, and the basics of fly husbandry,” he notes. “It was a fun, collaborative, and intellectually stimulating environment that fostered significant growth within the lab.”
Following his time at the Mechanobiology Institute, he began a postdoc position at Princeton University with Thomas Gregor. Singh details, “There, I developed a biophysical imaging tool to study transcription kinetics in developing fruit fly embryos. This was a highly collaborative effort involving advanced fly genetics with Eric Wieschaus, optogenetics with Ping Wu and Jared Toettcher, and novel two-photon imaging with optogenetic perturbation microscope development. As part of this diverse team, we demonstrated that acutely perturbing transcription factor concentrations while simultaneously recording output gene activity provides a powerful approach for studying gene regulatory networks with unprecedented accuracy.”
Continuing his research journey, he joined St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as a Scientist in the group of Scott Blanchard, a pioneer and inspiration to many early-career scientists in the biophysics community, particularly in the single-molecule field. Blanchard is the recipient of the 2025 Kazuhiko Kinosita Award in Single-Molecule Biophysics. Singh is extremely grateful for Blanchard’s mentorship, intellectual insights, and support and looks forward to continuing this connection through St. Jude’s educational and collaborative research initiatives. It’s work that exemplifies what Singh finds most compelling about his field: “My favorite aspect of biophysics is its ability to make the ‘invisible’ visible,” he says. “There is a unique excitement in building a custom microscope from individual lenses, lasers, and sensors and then using it to watch proteins diffuse or a gene turn on in real time.”
Recently, Singh joined the Department of Biology at the University of Mississippi as a Visiting Assistant Professor. His responsibilities include teaching, engaging in collaborative research, and departmental services. He shares, “I am actively seeking research collaborations and grant opportunities in the area of molecular condensates. My research will investigate how protein-RNA interactions and their biophysical properties regulate biochemical reactions. My work combines live cell imaging and computational tools to dissect the dynamics and functions of molecular aggregates in healthy and disease model systems.”
Singh’s trajectory has been shaped as much by financial struggle and geopolitical forces as by scientific curiosity. Growing up in a family of six supported by his father’s labor and his mother’s work as a homemaker, Singh relied on tutoring work and scholarships to fund his education and help his siblings. During graduate school, he was able to help his parents purchase farmland where they now grow organic vegetables in retirement.
The challenges Singh faces as an immigrant researcher in the United States have been greater in recent years due to geopolitical shifts in immigration policies. “These recent changes have significantly restricted international travel, making it much more difficult to visit family in India or attend conferences outside the US,” he explains. His response to those challenges demonstrates his adaptability, developed through years of working with limited resources: “I have focused on making the most of the opportunities available to me, particularly by actively participating in the BPS Annual Meeting and building strong professional connections here in the US.”
The lack of a strong regional biophysics community has proven equally challenging but also galvanizing. Singh’s solution is to organize a new regional event, Mid-South Biophysics and Quantitative Biology, designed to bring together undergraduate and graduate students from institutions across the region. He envisions it as a recurring event, initially biennial but eventually annual, that will provide local students with “the same sophisticated training and international networking opportunities that I was fortunate enough to receive across continents.” It’s an ambitious undertaking, supported by a Biophysical Society Networking Event mini-grant (more information will be available soon at www.biophysics.org/ upcoming-networking-events)..
When not in the lab or classroom, Singh is “likely organizing student outreach events or teaching high school students via WhatsApp,” sharing fundamentals of biology, chemistry, and physics. “Believe me, teaching online and keeping everyone focused is not easy, especially when students are on a different continent and the time difference adds another layer of challenge,” he remarks. “I manage this by listening to their stories and questions; we work together to find answers through back-and-forth discussions or by designing simple experiments they can perform to satisfy their curiosity.”
Singh sees public engagement as essential to the future of biophysics. “It is essential for the entire biophysics community, from students and postdocs to professors, to step outside the lab and engage with the broader public,” he declares. “This ensures that science remains a resilient, objective resource that serves everyone, rather than becoming a subject of political ideology.”
The mentoring aspect of his work provides what Singh describes as the most rewarding dimension of his career. At BPS meetings, he signs up for mentorship programs and visits undergraduate poster sessions, finding it “incredibly rewarding to discuss their scientific journeys, including the hardships they face and the excitement of testing a hypothesis.” He vividly remembers his own first BPS meeting in Philadelphia in 2013, where he proactively invited senior members to his poster and won a Student Research Achievement Award just before Karolin Luger’s National Lecture. “For a moment, we all felt like little superstars!” he recalls.
His current research investigates how protein-RNA interactions and their biophysical properties regulate biochemical reactions, with a particular focus on molecular condensates. Combining live-cell imaging with computational tools, Singh aims to dissect the dynamics and functions of molecular aggregates in both healthy and disease model systems. If he weren’t pursuing this work, he says he’d be growing exotic fruits and vegetables and actively supporting local farmers and communities by teaching them how to apply scientific methods to improve the crops and yields—a vision that connects his scientific training with his agricultural roots.
For students entering biophysics, Singh offers practical advice rooted in his own experience: connect with senior members during poster sessions, take advantage of the Society’s resources, and participate actively in both virtual and in-person events. The Biophysical Society, he emphasizes, offers extensive support programs, including travel grants, networking grants, poster prizes, bridging funds, and job boards for academic and industry positions. “There truly is something for every biophysicist,” he notes.