Nicole Clarke

Contact

• workRoom C91 Centre for Biomolecular Sciences
  University Park
  Nottingham
  NG7 2RD
  UK
• work0115 9515058
• nicole.clarke@nottingham.ac.uk

Biography

I am a Molecular Biologist and gained my PhD from the department of Biological Sciences at Columbia University in New York City, USA. I worked under the supervision of Professor Ron Prywes, working on immediate early gene expression and oncogenes. I then went on to do my Post-doctoral work at the Institut de Genetique at Biologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire (IGBMC) in Strasbourg, France. There I won a fellowship from the Association pour le Recherche sur le cancer (ARC) to work on retinoids and their potential as anti-cancer agents. In 2006, I joined the School of Pharmacy as a Lecturer in Gene Regulation.

Research Summary

My research interests focus on the study of tumour suppression. This incorporates a number of areas in molecular and cellular biology including, transcription, cell signalling, apoptosis and the cell… read more

Selected Publications

• FRONTINI, M, VIJAYAKUMAR, M, GARVIN, A and CLARKE, N, 2009. A ChIP-chip approach reveals a novel role for transcription factor IRF1 in the DNA damage response. Nucleic Acids Research. 37, 1073-1085
• CLARKE, N., JIMENEZ-LARA, A.M., VOLTZ, E. and GRONEMEYER, H., 2004. Tumor suppressor IRF-1 mediates retinoid and interferon anticancer signaling to death ligand TRAIL EMBO Journal. 23(15), 3051-3060
• NEBBIOSO, A., CLARKE, N., VOLTZ, E., GERMAIN, E., AMBROSINO, C., BONTEMPO, P., ALVAREZ, R., SCHIAVONE, E.M., FERRARA, F., BRESCIANI, F., WEISZ, A., DE LERA, A.R., GRONEMEYER, H. and ALTUCCI, L., 2005. Tumor-selective action of HDAC inhibitors involves TRAIL induction in acute myeloid leukemia cells Nature Medicine. 11(1), 77-84
• BENOSMAN, S., GROSS, I., CLARKE, N., JOCHEMSEN, A.G, OKAMOTO, K., LOEFFLER, J.-P. and GAIDDON, C., 2007. Multiple neurotoxic stresses converge on MDMX proteolysis to cause neuronal apoptosis Cell Death & Differentiation. (In Press.)

• View all publications

Current Research

My research interests focus on the study of tumour suppression. This incorporates a number of areas in molecular and cellular biology including, transcription, cell signalling, apoptosis and the cell cycle.Current studies include the elucidation of the transcriptional and cellular networks controlled by members of the Interferon Regulatory Factor (IRF) family. These proteins harbour tumour suppressor activity in a number of cancer cell systems including myeloid and breast cancer cells and are therefore potential targets for cancer therapy. We would like to decipher the molecular mechanisms underlying their anti-cancer action by applying new techniques in molecular biology such as Chip-on-chip. We will combine these Chip-on-chip studies with global transcriptional profiles and cellular studies to define a comprehensive network of their tumour suppressor activity. We are also conducting studies at the biochemical level to define post-translational modifications, which may affect the activity and function of the Interferon regulatory factors (BBSRC funded project). These studies could lead to the identification of novel ways to target these proteins. We currently have a number of collaborations ongoing with groups across Europe including, Professor Mantovani (Milan, Italy-Chip-chip studies) and Dr. Gaiddon (Strasbourg, France-p53 and tumour suppression). In my academic career, I have published papers that have lead to a deeper understanding of processes involved in oncogenesis and tumour suppression. My appointment to the School of Pharmacy will allow me to continue these studies, as well as widen my research areas.

Teaching

Laboratory Studies in Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences 3 (B33E07)

Biomolecular Therapeutics (B34G10)

• FRONTINI, M, VIJAYAKUMAR, M, GARVIN, A and CLARKE, N, 2009. A ChIP-chip approach reveals a novel role for transcription factor IRF1 in the DNA damage response. Nucleic Acids Research. 37, 1073-1085
• BENOSMAN, S., GROSS, I., CLARKE, N., JOCHEMSEN, A.G, OKAMOTO, K., LOEFFLER, J.-P. and GAIDDON, C., 2007. Multiple neurotoxic stresses converge on MDMX proteolysis to cause neuronal apoptosis Cell Death & Differentiation. (In Press.)
• NEBBIOSO, A., CLARKE, N., VOLTZ, E., GERMAIN, E., AMBROSINO, C., BONTEMPO, P., ALVAREZ, R., SCHIAVONE, E.M., FERRARA, F., BRESCIANI, F., WEISZ, A., DE LERA, A.R., GRONEMEYER, H. and ALTUCCI, L., 2005. Tumor-selective action of HDAC inhibitors involves TRAIL induction in acute myeloid leukemia cells Nature Medicine. 11(1), 77-84
• CLARKE, N., NEBBIOSO, A., ALTUCCI, L. and GRONEMEYER, H., 2005. TRAIL: at the center of drugable anti-tumor pathways Cell Cycle. 4(7), 914-918
• ALTUCCI, LUCIA, CLARKE, NICOLE, NEBBIOSO, ANGELA, SCOGNAMIGLIO, ANNAMARIA and GRONEMEYER, HINRICH, 2005. Acute myeloid leukemia: therapeutic impact of epigenetic drugs. International Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology. 37(9), 1752-62
• CLARKE, N., JIMENEZ-LARA, A.M., VOLTZ, E. and GRONEMEYER, H., 2004. Tumor suppressor IRF-1 mediates retinoid and interferon anticancer signaling to death ligand TRAIL EMBO Journal. 23(15), 3051-3060
• JIMÉNEZ-LARA, A M, CLARKE, N, ALTUCCI, L and GRONEMEYER, H, 2004. Retinoic-acid-induced apoptosis in leukemia cells. Trends in Molecular Medicine. 10(10), 508-15
• CLARKE, NICOLE, GERMAIN, PIERRE, ALTUCCI, LUCIA and GRONEMEYER, HINRICH, 2004. Retinoids: potential in cancer prevention and therapy. Expert Reviews in Molecular Medicine. 6(25), 1-23
• CLARKE, N, ARENZANA, N, HAI, T, MINDEN, A and PRYWES, R, 1998. Epidermal growth factor induction of the c-jun promoter by a Rac pathway. Molecular and Cellular Biology. 18(2), 1065-73