Born and raised in Vilnius during Lithuania’s post-independence era, Vilmantas Pupkis witnessed his country’s transformation as it joined the European Union and NATO. “I am very fortunate that I did not have to experience the Soviet occupation, like my parents and grandparents had to,” he reflects. “I grew up witnessing the development of the free and independent Lithuania.”
Pupkis was exposed to academic thinking from an early age. Both his parents are linguists specializing in the Lithuanian language, and earlier generations included teachers as well. “Although my leap to biophysics does not seem to be ‘pre-programmed,’ I was definitely exposed to academia and educational matters from a very young age,” he notes.
In high school, passionate teachers in both biology and physics sparked his interest in these subjects. When it came time for university, the choice seemed natural. “I found that Vilnius University offered an undergraduate program in biophysics. I chose it without much contemplation because combining two subjects that I liked seemed like a smart choice. As it turns out, I was lucky that it was the right decision,” he remarks.
Pupkis’s academic journey unfolded entirely at Vilnius University, where he earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD degrees—all in biophysics, with his doctorate completed in 2024. The university’s Life Sciences Center became his intellectual home. “Here, with its new laboratories and state-of-the-art equipment, I felt at home so much that I had no desire to move elsewhere,” he explains.
The choice of research focus came through a process of elimination rather than grand design. When selecting a laboratory for his undergraduate thesis, Pupkis knew what he wanted to avoid. “I ruled out working with animal model systems due to the potential for causing them harm. I imagined myself too introverted for human research, and the idea of working with minuscule volumes and expensive substances in molecular biology seemed too stressful.”
This led him to approach Vilma Kisnierienė and join the Group of Plant Cell Biophysics. “I decided to approach my eventual supervisor...and work on plants because it seemed unconventional and did not trigger any of my concerns. As it turns out, the field has been intriguing enough to keep me in it.”
Under Kisnierienė’s guidance, Pupkis discovered that plants are far more dynamic than commonly perceived. “They face many of the same challenges that animals do every day—what to eat, how to eat, how to avoid being eaten, how to combat illness, and how to survive long enough to reproduce,” he observes. “Despite their limited ability to move, plants successfully solve each of these problems and do so in surprisingly creative ways.”
His current research focuses on how plants use electrical signaling—the same biophysical mechanisms that animals employ for complex cognitive processes—to transmit information about environmental stressors throughout their bodies. “While animals employ electrical signals for various purposes, including complex cognitive processes,” Pupkis explains, “plants harness the same biophysical mechanisms of transient transmembrane ion currents to transmit information about external stressors from the affected area to distal parts of the body.” His work has evolved from classical electrophysiology toward spectroscopic techniques that reveal details about photosynthesis itself. “We are trying to decipher how fluctuations in a plant’s local environment can induce or modulate electrical signals, which in turn affect photosynthetic activity. The complexity of these signal transduction pathways will likely keep us busy for years,” he speculates.
Like many early career scientists, Pupkis has grappled with the unknowns of scientific research. “The first major cognitive hurdle I encountered at the very beginning was realizing that science operates on the frontier of knowledge,” he explains. “When one encounters a problem, sometimes an experienced colleague may offer some advice, but ultimately, no one can provide a definitive answer—because no one knows it yet.”
This understanding brings both excitement and responsibility. “Becoming an expert in a certain niche can be frightening because of the responsibility to produce true top-tier science that other researchers can refer to.” He adds, “With these thoughts, the imposter syndrome is never far away.”
Currently, he faces a quintessential challenge of scientific independence, learning “how to formulate a scientific problem that is complex enough to be interesting, relevant enough to acquire funding, but also simple enough to be solved using available scientific equipment and other means.”
Despite these challenges, Pupkis finds deep satisfaction in his work, particularly in teaching. His responsibilities include introducing undergraduate students to differential equations and plant physiology, and he participates in educational projects aimed at improving university pedagogy. “However, nothing can overshadow working with students as a teacher,” he emphasizes. “It is extremely satisfying to inspire these ‘lightbulb’ moments when students suddenly understand a complex concept.”
The Lithuanian system encourages early research involvement, with students often becoming co-authors on scientific publications. Pupkis takes pride in events like The Coins, an annual conference organized entirely by students at the Life Sciences Center, and which regularly attracts notable attendees, including Nobel Prize winners.
“One of the most rewarding aspects of my work is experiencing those ‘aha’ moments after thinking extensively about a particular problem,” he shares. “These moments can occur while reading, walking around, or preparing lunch—it feels amazing when it becomes clear that everything can be solved by a particular experiment.”
Pupkis values the collaborative nature of biophysics, crediting the supportiveness of his research community for his career progress. He maintains collaborations with groups in Poland and Hungary and serves as a council member of the Lithuanian Biophysical Society, organizing conferences and educational events.
His involvement with the Biophysical Society has been particularly meaningful. A BPS-EBSA Student Poster Award in 2023 led to participation in the Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, where he received a Travel Award and delivered a platform presentation. “As a scientist, I have never received a greater honor,” he notes.
Looking ahead, Pupkis sees biophysics as uniquely positioned to address global challenges. “Biophysicists come in many different ‘flavors,’ as there are many ways to become one,” he observes. The field’s interdisciplinary nature makes its practitioners well-suited for science communication and evidence-based policy making.
His personal research goals remain focused on “deciphering how various stressors regulate plant photosynthetic activity, which particular signaling molecules bridge vastly different physiological processes, and how.” He has a positive outlook on the future: “I am optimistic that there will always be students interested in plants, in biophysics, and in making our world a better place.”
For young scientists entering the field, Pupkis offers measured but encouraging advice: “Young people should not be afraid to ask questions and find a supportive community that encourages that.” He acknowledges that scientific problems often lack clear solutions, but emphasizes that “with humility of not knowing and a persistent curiosity, the power of the human mind is almost unlimited.”
When not immersed in research or teaching, Pupkis returns to those formative influences of his childhood—working from his family’s country house, cycling through the countryside, and reading with a cup of tea. These moments of reflection, away from laboratory equipment and lecture halls, continue to inform his understanding of the natural world he has dedicated his career to exploring.