Nirmala Iyer

Nirmala Iyer is a research specialist in electron microscopy and biological imaging, with expertise spanning connectomics and structural analysis across model systems including Drosophila, larval zebrafish, and Danionella. She develops and optimizes sample preparation workflows for high-resolution imaging across a range of biological applications.

She joined Janelia in 2009 as part of the FlyLight Project, contributing to large-scale neuronal labeling and imaging, and later served as Process Lead for the Multi-Color Flip-Out pipeline.

In 2014, she transitioned to electron microscopy, focusing on ultrastructural analysis and the development of precise, reproducible sample preparation workflows.

Nirmala works closely with collaborators to design and optimize custom protocols, refine sample preparation strategies, and train researchers in electron microscopy techniques and instrumentation.

Her technical capabilities include conventional and high-pressure freezing methods, volume EM (FIB-SEM), negative staining, and correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM), cryo-EM, and freeze substitution.

Nirmala is also responsible for the X-ray micro-CT (µCT) system within the EM Shared Resource, where she oversees instrument operation and maintenance, trains users in safety and best practices, and develops optimized workflows for imaging internal structures of larger biological specimens.

In her spare time, she works with discarded china and found objects, assembling mosaics that echo her scientific practice, bringing together fragments to reveal structure, pattern, and hidden form. Through painting and workshops, she explores this same interplay of material and meaning, bridging observation with interpretation.