SHRO Scientists Earn Award to Study Precision Medicine Using CDKs

Newswise — Scientists at the Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO) have recently been named the recipients of The Joy Cappel Investigator Award in recognition of their work translating focused research into meaningful experimental tools and scientific advancement. 

The award recognizes SHRO’s contributions to cancer research, particularly discoveries involving cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), proteins that play a critical role in regulating the cell cycle and have become important targets in cancer therapy. As a result, scientists working with SHRO will benefit from access to resources provided by the biotech company Rockland Immunochemicals. This collaboration is set up to support ongoing research into CDK10, a lesser-studied member of the CDK family that may help open new pathways toward more personalized cancer treatments.

“It is an honor to be recognized with this award,” said Antonio Giordano, M.D., Ph.D., Founder and Director of SHRO and Professor at Temple University. “This opportunity will help advance our understanding of therapeutic options within the CDK pathway and support the development of precision medicine tools to treat cancer.”

The Joy Cappel Investigator Award program supports high-quality, custom research and deep scientific collaboration to accelerate biomedical discovery. The program honors the legacy of Joy Cappel, who served as President and CEO of Rockland for more than thirty years. Cappel’s leadership and commitment to antibody-driven discovery continues to shape the advancement of life sciences research through collaboration and technical excellence.

Supporting New Research into CDK10

The SHRO award specifically supports the development of a custom antibody targeting CDK10, a cyclin-dependent kinase involved in cell cycle regulation. Although CDKs are well established in cancer biology, several family members, including CDK10, remain less understood due in part to the limited availability of high-quality research tools.

By enabling the creation of a validated antibody for CDK10, the award is expected to support deeper investigation into the protein’s biological role and its potential importance in precision oncology and targeted cancer therapies.

Recognition for Longstanding Contributions to Cancer Biology

SHRO was selected under the expanded scope of the Joy Cappel Investigator Award, which now also recognizes established investigators whose work demonstrates sustained scientific impact and alignment with the program’s mission.

Researchers at SHRO have built a longstanding body of work in cancer biology, with particular expertise in cyclin-dependent kinases, cell cycle regulation, and related signaling pathways. Their research has consistently focused on translating complex biological questions into experimentally tractable systems that can advance both basic science and translational medicine.

In addition to their scientific contributions, SHRO investigators have extensive experience using antibody-based research approaches and developing custom reagents to study cancer-relevant pathways. Prior collaborative efforts in the cell cycle research field have contributed to a broad set of antibody-based tools that continue to support cancer research across multiple disciplines.

Expanding the Research Toolkit

The CDK10 project represents a continuation of ongoing work in the broader cyclin/CDK research space. By expanding the available toolkit to include CDK10-specific reagents, the project is expected to enable new lines of inquiry while addressing a significant gap in available research tools.

The initiative also reflects the collaborative model at the heart of the Joy Cappel Investigator Award — bringing together scientific expertise and technical capability to create tools that can have long-term impact beyond a single study.

Originally launched in 2014 as the Joy Cappel Young Investigator Award, the program was designed to support early-career scientists pursuing ambitious antibody-based projects. Over time, it expanded into a broader scientific initiative supporting dozens of custom antibody development efforts at leading research institutions.

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