Profile of Ian A. Wilson

Abstract

Viewed up close, antibodies, cellular receptors, and viral proteins may look like sloppy piles of spaghetti, fettucine, and fusilli to the untrained eye, but that’s not what Ian Wilson sees. “Protein structures are things of beauty, with their complex web of intricately positioned and interlocking elements that fold up precisely to generate a particular biological function,” says Ian Wilson, a professor of structural biology at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. Ian Wilson. Image courtesy of BioMedical Graphics, The Scripps Research Institute. Broadly neutralizing antibody CR6261 bound to a hemagglutinin stem. Image courtesy of Marc-Andre Elsliger (The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA). Soluble HIV-1 envelope in complex with broadly neutralizing antibody PGT122. Image courtesy of Marc-Andre Elsliger (The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA). Wilson, who was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 2016, has dedicated his career to solving the structures of immune system proteins. He hopes that these structures will provide insights into how the immune system interacts with and neutralizes human pathogens and, thus, how improved vaccines and therapies can be designed. Wilson grew up in Perth, Scotland, with his parents and sister. His father, who was a journalist, enlisted Wilson to help cover the major soccer matches in his home town. During live matches, Wilson would take his father’s copy covering the game and, every few minutes, dictate it by telephone to the local newspaper for evening publication. “He would also send me to local soccer matches, and I would have to write up 50 words and send it in within 10 minutes of the match finishing,” says Wilson. He adds that this practice was excellent training for his career, which can include impromptu speaking events and writing abstracts, grants, and papers. After earning a degree in biochemistry from …