Robert R Clarke

Robert R Clarke serves as Executive Director and Director of The Hormel Institute, and holds a Professor position in the Chemical and Structural Biology department at the University of Minnesota Medical School. His research focuses on breast cancer mechanisms, drug resistance, and systems biology approaches to understanding hormone receptor signaling.

Dr. Clarke's research interests center on breast cancer biology with specific emphasis on drug resistance mechanisms, hormone receptor signaling pathways, and systems biology approaches to cancer. His work integrates molecular biology, computational approaches, and structural analysis to understand cancer progression and treatment resistance. He has developed several computational tools including CAM3.0 for cell type deconvolution and DDN3.0 for network analysis, demonstrating his interdisciplinary approach spanning wet lab and computational biology.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on breast cancer mechanisms, particularly TXNIP's anti-tumor role and antiestrogen resistance. His research increasingly incorporates computational biology approaches for analyzing complex biological data, including RNA-seq analysis, network rewiring in cancer, and cellular composition determination from bulk tissues. The work spans basic molecular mechanisms to translational applications, including nanoparticle-based cancer therapies.

Dr. Clarke leads multiple significant research projects including 'Novel functions of ESRRB in glioblastoma' funded by NIH (2024-2026), 'CryoEM Support Technology' from NIST (2023-2025), 'Cell communication in antiestrogen resistance' from the Department of Defense (2021-2023), 'Development of a Cancer Immune Therapy Paradigm with Iron Oxide Nanoparticles' from Johns Hopkins University (2020-2023), and 'Integrative analysis of exitrons in metastatic prostate cancer' from the Department of Defense (2019-2024).

As Executive Director of The Hormel Institute, Dr. Clarke leads a major cancer research center focused on understanding cellular mechanisms of cancer. His team employs diverse approaches including molecular biology, structural biology, computational analysis, and animal models to investigate cancer progression and treatment resistance. The institute has produced significant research output with over 360 publications attributed to Dr. Clarke's work.