William Tobey Wickner

William Tobey Wickner is a Professor of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College. His laboratory investigates the molecular mechanisms of membrane vesicle fusion, with particular focus on yeast vacuoles using in vivo, purified vacuole, and reconstituted proteoliposome systems.

Dr. Wickner's research interests center on membrane fusion biochemistry, specifically studying how SNARE proteins, HOPS complex, Sec17/Sec18, and regulatory lipids orchestrate vesicle fusion. His work has revealed critical insights into SNARE zippering mechanics, lipid requirements for fusion, Rab GTPase coordination, and the hierarchical assembly of fusion machinery at vertex ring domains. Key discoveries include identifying PI3P as a critical lipid regulator, demonstrating Sec17/Sec18's dual roles in fusion promotion and complex disassembly, and establishing minimal reconstitution requirements for membrane fusion.

His laboratory has published over 200 papers, with recent work (2020-2024) focusing on:

• Distinct requirements for Sec17/Sec18 in fusion with defective versus wild-type SNAREs
• Role of juxtamembrane domains and transmembrane anchors in fusion regulation
• Asymmetric Rab activation of HOPS for SNARE assembly
• PI3P's multifaceted regulation of fusion stages

These studies consistently demonstrate how combinatorial interactions between proteins, lipids, and nucleotides create precise control over membrane fusion events.

Dr. Wickner has received numerous honors including election to the National Academy of Sciences (1996), EMBO foreign membership (2000), the Bonhoeffer Medal (2009), and the ASBMB Rose Award (2017).

His laboratory currently includes key personnel Amy Orr (Laboratory Manager) and Karina Lopes (Research Assistant), who contribute significantly to ongoing membrane fusion research. Dr. Wickner's work continues to define fundamental principles of intracellular membrane trafficking with implications across cell biology.