Peter Walter

Dr. Peter Walter is Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco, where he is also an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Walter is focused on finding molecular answers to fundamental questions in cell biology. To that end, his lab studies how cells control the quality of their proteins and organelles during homeostasis, and in response to internal and external stresses. Over the years, Walter’s lab group has identified cellular machinery and mechanisms that ensure proper protein synthesis, folding, and targeting. They have also uncovered pathways that allow organelles to communicate and regulate their abundance, such as the unfolded protein response – a quality control system that adjusts the endoplasmic reticulum’s capacity according to need. Historically, much of the lab’s work started in yeast and established key principles that the group then extended to mammalian systems. The Walter lab’s current focus is on understanding how rewiring of basic and phylogenetically conserved processes of protein quality control can lead to, or prevent, the progression of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, and neurodegenerative diseases. In this quest, the group uses a diverse array of approaches – ranging from biophysics and biochemistry to classical and chemical genetics – to fuel the search for fundamental discoveries and their application to disease models. Walter is a co-author of the textbook Molecular Biology of the Cell, one of the most world's most widely used standard works in the field of cell biology. He has received many accolades for his research, including the Virchow Medal, the Gairdner International Award, the Otto Warburg Medal, the Shaw Prize, the Lasker Award, and the Vilcek Prize. In addition to his American Academy of Arts and Sciences membership, he is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the Leopoldina Academy of Sciences, the European Molecular Biology Organization, and the American Academy of Microbiology.