Wilkie Andrew Wilson, Jr.

Wilkie Andrew Wilson, Jr. died on March 3, 2024 in Durham, North Carolina. A memorial service will be held on March 23 at 4 pm at Duke Memorial Methodist Church, Durham, NC.  It will be followed by a celebration of his life at Cafe Parizade, 2200 West Main Street, Durham, NC.

Wilkie was born on October 26, 1944 in Lake Charles, Louisiana, the son of Wilkie Andrew Wilson and Josephine Vincent Wilson.  He grew up in Alexandria, Louisiana, where he attended Bolton High School, graduating in 1962. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (BSEE) from Louisiana State University in 1966.

He earned his PhD in 1971 from the Duke University Department of Biomedical Engineering with Dr. Howard Wachtel. His dissertation was titled: A Voltage Clamp Analysis of Slow Waves and Prolonged Synaptic Potentials in Bursting Neurons.  He developed the electronics behind the single-electrode voltage clamp, which allowed electrophysiologists to use a single microelectrode to stimulate and record from small, individual neurons, such as those found in the brain of humans and most laboratory animals.  This innovation revolutionized electrophysiology, and to this day, his methods are used worldwide in thousands of laboratories.

In 1971 he accepted a research position at the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC)  Epilepsy Center.  He maintained a long-term association with the Durham VAMC, reaching Research Career Scientist in 1988 and Emeritus status in 2011. In 1973 he added a tenure-track position as Medical Research Scientist in the Duke Medical Center in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, reaching Professor in 1991.  In 2009 he transitioned to Professor of Prevention Sciences at Duke.

Throughout the five decades of his career, Dr. Wilson explored topics ranging from the basic neurophysiology of individual neurons through learning and addiction in adolescent humans.  His bench laboratory research focused on animal models of neurophysiology, epilepsy, learning, and addiction.  He and his research team members and collaborators helped establish the role of the NMDA- and AMPA-glutamatergic receptor in the develop and expression of chronic epileptic seizures, as well as the role of GABA receptors in neurotransmitter release and absence seizures.  They also explored the differential effects of alcohol, cannabinoids, and other drugs of abuse in adolescents, including focusing on the long-term impacts on learning and behavior in animals and humans.  He applied his interest in adolescent neuroplasticity and the science of addiction to programs for schools across the US.

He published over 110 peer-reviewed articles, including six in the journal Science and three in Nature.  He was the principal investigator (PI) or Co-PI on grants including those from the Veterans Administration (VA), the National Institute of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense. He served on NIH and VA Study Sections and was an active member of the American Epilepsy Society.  He was Senior Editor on the Jasper's Basic Mechanisms of the Epilepsies (3rd edition), one of the main resources on epilepsy research.  He also worked on drug development with several pharmaceutical companies.  He co-authored three books, co-authoring, with Schwartzwelder, Kuhn, Wilson and Foster, the textbook “Buzzed: Straight Facts about the Most Used an Abused Drugs from Alcohol to Ecstasy” by Norton in 1989, which is now in its 4th edition.   In the 1990’s he branched out into educational programs, becoming the Director of DukeLEARN, among other initiatives.

As an educator, he trained nearly twenty post-doctoral fellows and twelve PhD or MD/PhD graduate students.  His post-doctoral trainees have become researchers and faculty members at the NIH, Duke University, the University of South Carolina, University of Alberta, University of Texas at Austin, Akita University Medical Center (Akita, Japan), and the Medical College of Georgia, as well as pharmaceutical companies including Becton Dickinsons and Amgen Pharmaceuticals.  His graduate students went on to faculty appointments at the University of Washington, the University California at San Francisco, University of Iowa, University of South Carolina, Stanford University, the University of Bristol (UK), the University of Wyoming, and California Northstate University, while other trainees held positions with the EPA in Research Triangle Park (RTP), the Armed Forces Radiobiology Institute (Bethesda), Glaxo Wellcome (RTP), and Abbott Laboratories.

His graduate students have said that “His laboratory had a unique and innovative atmosphere.  A broad range of scientific ideas were welcomed and the creative process was promoted.  He was intellectually generous and encouraged a sense of inclusiveness, rather than cut-throat competition, such that even those outside the lab were welcome to join projects or participate in problem-solving discussions.  Work and laughter were not mutually exclusive.  His generous spirit provided a rich soil in which a range of ideas and concepts grew - and will continue to live on for the many who knew him. “

Dr. Wilson became concerned about the growing use of recreational drugs among teens and young adults, and co-founded a curriculum for ninth grade health science. The focus of the curriculum was not drug use specifically, but how to protect and care for the adolescent brain. This curriculum was piloted in Wake County, North Carolina, and now is in use in all Wake County middle schools.

Wilkie was also involved in local education and equality issues, chairing a committee of the Merger Issues Task Force which ultimately brought about the merger of the Durham City and County school systems. He also participated in a number of activities aimed at revitalizing Durham’s in-town neighborhoods. This included hosting parties for the American Dance Festival, participating in neighborhood home tours, and funding struggling non-profits concerned with racial and economic equality. His civic interests also included membership in the Rotary Club where he was a Paul Harris Fellow. He was a long-time member of the Marge Clark  Sunday School Class at Duke Memorial Methodist Church.

Upon his retirement from Duke, he began a second career as an expert witness, testifying in criminal cases that involved drugs, both prescription and street substances. His work took him to courtrooms in Alabama, California, Wyoming, Louisiana, New York, Pennsylvania and others. He testified in trials ranging from capital cases to DUI hearings, always on the side of the defense. This work continued unabated until just a few days before his death.

He leaves behind his wife of 56 years, Linda Broyles Wilson, his daughters Leigh Heather Wilson and Stephanie Vincent Wilson, and grandchildren Linda Vivianne Wilson and Wilkie Andrew Wilson III. A memorial service will be held on March 23 at 4 pm at Duke Memorial Methodist Church, Durham, NC.  It will be followed by a celebration of his life at Cafe Parizade, 2200 West Main Street, Durham, NC.

Gifts in memory of Wilkie Wilson may be made to the Durham APS, Daniel.fraser@apsofdurham or Beautiful Together, beautifultogethersanctuary.com