J. Chuck Harrell, PhD
Principle Investigator of the Computational Medicine Lab; Associate Professor
Department: Pathology
Phone: (804) 828-8710
Fax: (804) 828-9749
Email: Joshua.Harrell@vcuhealth.org
Chuck Harrell, PhD, is the Principle Investigator of the Computational Medicine Lab and an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University Health System. He has been a faculty member in the Department of Pathology since May 2015.
Dr. Harrell earned his Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from North Carolina State University and performed research that focused on estrogen receptor biology at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences under the guidance of Dr. Kenneth Korach. He received his PhD degree in Cell and Developmental Biology from the University of Colorado, mentored by Dr. Kathryn Horwitz. His PhD thesis focused on developing and testing models of estrogen receptor positive breast cancer metastasis. Post-doctoral training with Charles Perou at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill focused on bioinformatics-based approaches to stratify genomic mediators of basal-like, HER2-enriched, and luminal breast cancer metastasis. His research program utilizes in vitro, in vivo, and in silico models to identify drug-resistance mechanisms and then targeting them in the metastatic setting to improve outcomes.
Dr. Harrell is an active member in the PDX Network organization and is a Principal Investigator for a VCU led team effort to generate new patient-derived xenografts, with an emphasis on developing new model systems that effectively represent our patient population. Current studies are 1) utilizing patient-derived-xenograft models to identify genetic drivers of metastasis, 2) contrasting how individual patient proteogenomic profiles correspond with targeted drug response at the single-cell level, 3) determining pharmacological approaches to overcome drug resistance for breast cancer and pancreatic cancer, 4) development of novel antibody-drug conjugates, and 5) defining genetic ancestry contributions towards drug efficacy.
Dr. Harrell’s lab has been funded by the Department of Defense, Expedition Inspiration, the Jeffress Trust, National Cancer Institute, METAvivor, and Susan G. Komen. His peer-reviewed publications primarily focus on breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, metastasis, and the use of synergistic drug combinations to identify novel treatments.
Research interests: Cancer genomics, proteomics, metastasis, patient-derived breast cancer xenograft models, targeted therapeutics.
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Dr. Chuck Harrell abbreviated CV
Education
Postgraduate Training
2008 - 2015 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Graduate Education
2002-2007 University of Colorado
VCU Service
10X Genomics Chromium Manager
Faculty advisor for VCU Genomics Core
Faculty advisor for VCU Proteomics Shared Resource
Faculty advisor for VCU Cancer Mouse Models Shared Resource
Faculty advisor for VCU Biostatistics Shared Resource
Professional Organizations
American Association for Cancer Research
Metastasis Research Society
North Carolina State University Alumni Association
Recent Publications
Peer Reviewed Publications
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1DCUw_hntgiki/bibliography/public/
Print/Download Dr. Harrell Web CV (pdf)