WAS/WASL-interacting protein family member 1

WIPF1 (WAS/WASL-interacting protein family member 1) is an adapter protein that orchestrates actin cytoskeleton reorganization by recruiting and activating WASL in collaboration with NCK1 and GRB2 (UniProt: O43516). This function is critical for dynamic cellular processes including filopodia formation, cell ruffles, and intracellular pathogen mobility. The protein is primarily implicated in Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome 2 (WAS2), a genetic immunodeficiency characterized by eczema, thrombocytopenia, and immune dysfunction.

In Alzheimer's Disease, WIPF1 is upregulated in post-mortem AD brain tissue compared to age-matched controls, with a mean log2 fold-change of 0.63 (Chaparral AD proteomics). This elevation was detected across subcellular fractions in TMT-labeled proteomics analysis of human brain homogenates. The functional role of elevated WIPF1 in AD pathology remains to be determined, though increased cytoskeletal remodeling activity may relate to neuronal dysfunction or synaptic changes characteristic of neurodegeneration.