Rob received his PhD in chemistry from the University of Illinois-Chicago, studying the structural basis of lipid-protein interactions. During postdoctoral work at the University of Illinois-Chicago, he investigated the mechanisms with which bioactive lipid signals recruit peripheral proteins in cell signaling and membrane trafficking. Rob moved to South Bend in 2006 to work as an Assistant Professor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Indiana University School of Medicine-South Bend (IUSM-SB) and as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame. In 2012 he was promoted to Associate Professor and in 2013 was named an IUSM Showalter Scholar. In 2015, Rob was named to the endowed professorship position, Navari Family Scholar, at IUSM-SB. In 2017, Rob moved his lab to Purdue University being appointed the Retter Professor of Pharmacy in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology. Rob has been funded by the NIH since 2009 for his work on filovirus replication in human cells and has published more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles. Since starting his lab, he has mentored 13 PhD students, 7 postdocs, and more than 25 undergraduates.
