People

Dr. Monika Vig

Principal Investigator

Associate Professor

Email: mvig at tifrh dot res dot in

Phone: +91 40 20203082

Education

• Undergraduate Bachelor of Science (Zoology), Delhi University, Delhi. [1992-1995]
• Graduate Master of Science (Life Sciences), Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. [1995-1997]
• Ph.D (Immunology), National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi. [1997-2002]

Academic Positions

• 2003-2006 : Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Pathology, BIDMC, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
• 2007-2010 : Instructor, Department of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
• 2010-2017 : Tenure track Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
• 2017-Present : Associate Professor, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Hyderabad, INDIA.

Team

Post-Doctoral Fellows

Sritama Datta

Postdoctoral Fellow

Sritama has received Bachelor’s Degree in Microbiology from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata and has completed Integrated M.Sc-PhD at The Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Hyderabad, in 2026 from Prof. Monika Vig’s Lab and has joined as a Post-Doctoral Fellow. Her research interest lies in exploring the molecular mechanisms underlying CRAC channel activation specifically using molecular and cellular biological tools.

Apart from research, she enjoys singing, reading novels and running.

SreeVidya T S LinkedIn

Project Research Scientist II

SreeVidya completed her PhD at The Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc), Chennai, in 2024, followed by a short postdoctoral stint at IMSc. Her research interests lie in computational biology, particularly in understanding the nature and dynamics of biomolecules through molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. She is currently working on understanding CRAC channel dynamics in membrane lipids and designing CRAC agonists.

Outside of research, she enjoys reading novels and listening to music.

PHD Scholars

Atharva Yande LinkedIn

Atharva received his Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology from Fergusson College, Pune, followed by a Master’s degree in Medical Biotechnology (DBT) from Bharathiar University, Coimbatore. His current research interests focus on understanding the role of calcium channel stoichiometry in cellular signalling using super-resolution and single-molecule imaging techniques.

Outside the lab, he can often be found outdoors playing football, bouldering, or hiking.

IPHD Scholars

Abhikarsh Gupta LinkedIn, X

Abhikarsh received his Bachelors degree in Microbiology from Swami Shraddhanand College, University of Delhi. His interests lie in the development and evolution of the immune system. Currently, he is working on understanding the T cell driven immunodeficiency and hyperinflammation in patients and mice deficient in regulators of CRAC channels that belong to the synaptic family.

Beyond his interest in science, Abhikarsh really enjoys painting, reading fiction and going for long runs.

Resmi Bera

Resmi completed her Bachelors degree in Life Sciences from Presidency University, Kolkata, West Bengal. Her interests broadly lie in cell biology and molecular biology. At present, she is trying to understand the molecular mechanism underlying the regulation of calcium flux via CRAC channels.

Besides science, her hobbies include reading non-fiction and going for long walks.

Shreyas Joshi LinkedIn

Shreyas completed his Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology from Fergusson College (Autonomous). His current interests lie in exploring signalling pathways through the lens of protein biochemistry.

When away from the lab, you can expect to find him looking for birds and spiders (only the jumping kind) anywhere possible.

Visiting Students

Sharada Baxi

Sharada completed her Master’s in Pharmacology from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Hyderabad. Her research interests lie in understanding the molecular mechanisms that drive disease progression. Currently, she is expanding her experimental skills, gaining hands-on experience with laboratory techniques and research approaches.

Besides science, she enjoys being with nature, spending time with pets, and crocheting.