Hanna Wacklin-Knecht

Hanna Wacklin

Head of Scientific Support Division

Research Activities

My research interests lie in biophysical chemistry of lipid membranes, including their formation, structure and interaction with bioactive molecules such as proteins, enzymes, toxins and antimicrobial agents. 

Current Projects and Collaborations

  • Lipid alterations in cancer – imaging cell membrane structure and dynamics at the molecular scale (AMBER COFUND at LINXS)
  • Neobiogenesis Advanced Study group at Lund University Pufendorf Institute
  • MedCAN project: Regulation of programmed cell death by mitochondrial membrane proteins (in collaboration with STFC and Umeå University)
  • Self-assembly and spontaneous lipid asymmetry in biological membranes
  • Biological deuteration and isolation of lipids from cell cultures (yeast, bacteria)

Selected Publications

  • M. Jacewic, J. Elmer, J. Doutch, T. Arnold, J. Nightingale, T. Ekelöf, T. Nylander, H. Wacklin-Knecht, "Newton’ fast shutter system for neutron scattering instruments at the ESS and ISIS neutron sources", Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment 1055, 168556 (2023). doi: 10.1016/j.nima.2023.168556
  • Clifton, L.A., H. P. Wacklin-Knecht, J. Ådén, A. U. Mushtaq, T. Sparrman and G. Gröbner, "Creation of distinctive Bax-lipid complexes at mitochondrial membrane surfaces drives pore formation to initiate apoptosis", Science Advances 9, eadg7940 (2023). doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adg7940
  • Orozco Rodriguez, J.M.; Wacklin-Knecht, H.P.; Clifton, L.A.; Bogojevic, O.; Leung, A.; Fragneto, G.; Knecht, W., "New Insights into the Interaction of Class II Dihydroorotate Dehydrogenases with Ubiquinone in Lipid Bilayers as a Function of Lipid Composition", International Journal of Molecular Sciences 23(5), 2347 (2022). doi: 10.3390/ijms23052437
  • Ul Mushtaq, A.; Aden, J.; Clifton, L.A.; Wacklin-Knecht, H.; Campana, M.; Dingeldein, A.P.G.; Persson, C.; Sparrman, T.; Gröbner, G. "Neutron reflectometry and NMR spectroscopy of full-length Bcl-2 protein reveal its membrane localization and conformation", Communications Biology 4 (2021). doi: 10.1038/s42003-021-02032-1 
  • Delhom, R.; Nelson, A.; Laux, V.; Haertlein, M.; Knecht, W.; Fragneto, G.; Wacklin-Knecht, H.P., "The Antifungal Mechanism of Amphotericin B Elucidated in Ergosterol and Cholesterol-Containing Membranes Using Neutron Reflectometry", Nanomaterials 10 (2020) doi: 10.3390/nano10122439 
  • Andersen, K.H.; Argyriou, D.N.; Jackson, A.J.; Houston, J.; Henry, P.F.; Deen, P.P.; Toft-Petersen, R.; Beran, P.; Strobl, M.; Arnold, T.; Wacklin-Knecht, H. et al., "The instrument suite of the European Spallation Source", Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research Section a-Accelerators Spectrometers Detectors and Associated Equipment 957 (2020) doi: 10.1016/j.nima.2020.163402
  • T. Narayanan, H. Wacklin, O. Konovalov, R. Lund, "Recent applications of synchrotron radiation and neutrons in the study of soft matter", Crystallography Reviews, 1-67 (2017).  doi: 10.1080/0889311X.2016.1277212
  • Z. Fisher, A. Jackson, A. Kovalevsky, E. Oksanen, H. Wacklin, Chapter 1 - "Biological Structures", in: F. Fernandez-Alonso, D.L. Price (Eds.) Experimental Methods in the Physical Sciences, vol. 49, Academic Press, 1-75 (2017) doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-805324-9.00001-7
  • H. P. Wacklin, B.Bakrač, M.Moulin, M.Haertlein, T.Forsyth, G. Anderluh and R.S. Norton, “Neutron reflection study of the interaction of the eukaryotic pore-forming cytolysin equinatoxin II with lipid membranes: effects of sphingomyelin and cholesterol”, BBA Biomembranes, 1858(4), 640-52 (2016) doi: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2015.12.019.
  • N.R. Yepuri, T.A. Darwish, A.M. Krause-Heuer, A.E. Leung, R.Delhom, H.P. Wacklin, P.J. Holden, “The synthesis of perdeuterated 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC-d82) and the characterisation of its lipid bilayer membrane structure by neutron reflectometry“, ChemPlusChem, 81(3), 315-321 (2016) doi: 10.1002/cplu.201500452
  • de Ghellinck, A., Fragneto, G., Laux, V., Haertlein, M., Jouhet, J., Sferrazza, M., Wacklin, H.P.,  “Lipid polyunsaturation determines the extent of membrane structural changes induced by Amphotericin B in Pichia pastoris yeast”, BBA Biomembranes, 1848, 2317–2325 (2015) doi: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2015.06.006.
  • L. Darré, J. Iglesias-Fernandez, A.Kohlmeyer, H. Wacklin, C. Domene (2015), “Molecular dynamics simulations and neutron reflectivity as an effective approach to characterize biological membranes and related macromolecular assemblies”, Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation, 11(10), 4875–4884 (2015) doi: 10.1021/acs.jctc.5b00635.
  • T. Lind, H.Wacklin, J. Schiller, M.Moulin, M. Haertlein, T. Günther Pomorski and M. Cárdenas, “Formation and characterization of supported lipid bilayers composed of hydrogenated and deuterated Escherichia coli lipids”, PLos ONE, 10(12): e0144671 (2015)  doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0144671
  • A. de Ghellinck, H.Schaller, V.Laux, M.Haertlein, M.Sferrazza, E.Marechal, H.Wacklin, J.Jouhet, G.Fragneto, “Production and Analysis of Perdeuterated Lipids from Pichia pastoris Cells”, PlosOne 9(4), e92999 (2014) doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092999
  • A. P.Dabkowska, C.S. Niman, G.  Piret, H. Persson, H.P. Wacklin, H. Linke, C. N. Prinz, and T. Nylander , "Fluid and Highly Curved Model Membranes on Vertical Nanowire Arrays", Nano Letters 14(8), 4286–4292 (2014) doi:10.1021/nl500926y
  • C. Wang, H.Wacklin, D. Craik, “Cyclotides Insert Into Lipid Bilayers to Form Membrane Pores and Destabilize the Membrane Through Hydrophobic and Phosphoethanolamine-specific Interactions”, Journal of Biological Chemistry, 287(52), 43884–43898 (2012)  doi: 10.1074/jbc.M112.421198
  • Wacklin, H.P. “Composition and asymmetry in supported lipid membranes formed by vesicle fusion”  Langmuir 27(12), 7698-7707 (2011) doi: 10.1021/la200683e
  • Wacklin, H.P. "Inferfacial Mechanism of Phospholipase A2: pH dependent activation and Me-β-cyclodextrin activation"   Biochemistry 48, 5874-5881 (2009)  doi: 10.1021/bi802280b

Career History

  • 2015 - Adjunct Associate Professor (docent), Division of Physical Chemistry, Lund University
  • 2023 - Senior Scientist, Chemistry and Life Science Group, Scientific Activities Division, ESS, Lund
  • 2018 - 2023 Scientist for Life Science, DEMAX Platform, Scientific Activities Division, ESS, Lund
  • 2011 -2018  Instrument Scientist/Instrument Class Coordinator for Neutron reflectometry, ESS, Lund
  • 2011-2016 : Adjunct Associate Professor, Institute for Chemistry, Copenhagen University.
  • 2009-2010: Instrument co-Responsible for FIGARO Neutron Reflectometer, ILL Grenoble
  • 2006-2009: Post-doc fellow, National Deuteration Facility, ANSTO, Sydney
  • 2005-2006: Toshiba Research Fellow, Advanced Materials Laboratory, Toshiba R&D Centre, Tokyo
  • 2004-2005: Post-doc fellow, Oxford University, Physical Chemistry Laboratory
  • 2000-2004: DPhil in Physical Chemistry, University College, Oxford University
  • 1995-1999: MSci in Chemistry, Imperial College, London.