Robert Haselkorn, influential researcher and mentor in molecular genetics and cell biology, 1934-2025

Robert Haselkorn, PhD, Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, passed away at his home on February 10, 2025, at the age of 90.

Haselkorn was widely known for his work on plant viral RNA, which carries genetic information for making new viruses that infect plants and can devastate crops, as well as his work on the molecular genetics of nitrogen fixation and photosynthesis in cyanobacteria and purple bacteria. He was also known for his research on acetyl-CoA carboxylase, which catalyzes the first step in the synthesis of fatty acids.

Contemporaries remember Haselkorn as a “whiz kid” who held great influence within his department and the larger scientific community.   

Haselkorn joined the University of Chicago in 1961 as an assistant professor in biophysics. He rapidly rose through the ranks, being promoted to associate professor in 1964, professor in 1967, and, ultimately, the Fanny L. Pritzker Distinguished Service Professor. He was the founding chairman of the Department of Biophysics and Theoretical Biology, which was succeeded by the Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology. He also held an academic appointment in the Department of Chemistry. Haselkorn maintained an active lab and continued his research at the University after retiring in 2009.

“Bob was among the group of people who developed the paradigm that we still use today to think about how genes control biochemical reactions,” said Bernard Strauss, Professor Emeritus of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, who served as the chair of the Department of Microbiology from 1969 to 1985. “He was popular in the research community and a very respected scientist.”

“He was extremely intelligent and extremely motivated,” added Theodore Steck, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. “He got off to a great start scientifically, which allowed him to climb the ladder quickly. He was also one of the most loyal University of Chicago citizens I have known. He really cared enormously about the University and served it well in multiple ways.”

Leaving a legacy at UChicago

One of the many ways Haselkorn served the UChicago community was through teaching and mentoring. Regarded as a brilliant teacher, he was twice the recipient of the University’s Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.

He encouraged students at all levels – undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral researchers – to pursue projects that interested them, and his approachability and open-door policy helped nurture several budding scientists.

“Bob was really interested in getting young people into the sciences and encouraging their curiosity,” said Piotr Gornicki, a research associate in the Haselkorn Lab from 1990 to 2018. “Bob liked mentoring young scientists. His lab had a lot of success preparing undergraduates for graduate and medical schools.”

In 2003, Haselkorn and his wife established the annual Margot and Robert Haselkorn Visiting Lecture, which has brought leaders in molecular genetics and cell biology to campus for a week to give talks about their work. This year will mark the 18th Haselkorn lecture and feature one of his former postdocs, Susan Golden, a professor at the University of California-San Diego who studies cyanobacteria.

“Bob wanted to make an investment in education for our faculty and the community at large,” said Laurens Mets, Associate Professor Emeritus of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, who worked with Haselkorn to establish the event. “The idea was to bring leading scientists to the University to give public and scientific lectures, and to meet and interact extensively with students and postdocs in the department. The series has been extremely valuable not just for learning about the science, but also for giving our students exposure to leading scientists from around the world.”

A career marked by honors

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Haselkorn received a bachelor's degree from Princeton University in 1956 and a PhD in biochemistry from Harvard University three years later. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Cambridge, England, at the Agricultural Research Council. There he was inspired by the work of Francis Crick and James Watson, who discovered the structure of DNA, to focus his research on molecular biology and biophysics.

Among his many honors, Haselkorn was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society. He received the Gregor Mendel Medal in Biological Science from the Czech Academy of Sciences and was also awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. Haselkorn served on the Marine Biological Laboratory Board of Trustees from 2003-2010 and 2012-2015 and received the title of trustee emeritus in 2015.

The co-founder of two biotechnology companies and a scientific advisor to many others, he held several patents in the biochemical field.

Haselkorn met his wife of 67 years, née Margot Block, on a blind date while at Harvard. The pair married in 1957. They have two children, Deborah and David, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Those who wish to honor Dr. Haselkorn’s memory may make a contribution to the National Academies Committee on Human Rights.