Developmental Research Program
Sarki Abdulkadir, MD, PhD - Core Director
Maha Hussain, MD - Core Co-Director
The Developmental Research Program (DRP) is an essential component of the Prostate SPORE, providing yearly funding to 4-5 projects that are selected via peer review and deemed to have promising translational potential. It is expected that DRP investigators will develop and advance their pilots sufficiently to either replace main projects that are not progressing or will secure independent funding in prostate cancer research. The DRP follows a highly structured process to solicit projects from investigators who are interested in developing projects in the area of prostate cancer, to review projects according to NIH review criteria and to monitor projects for scientific progress. Of note, both projects in the renewal emanated from pilot projects and are translating discoveries made in the lab to the clinic.
Current Awardees
Marc Mendillo, PhD, Assistant Professor, Dept of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Targeting the HSF1 network as a strategy to expand the reach of prostate cancer immunotherapy
Akash Patnaik, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Chicago Medicine
Investigating the Therapeutic Potential for STING Agonists to Overcome Resistance to Immune Checkpoint Blockade in PTEN-deficient Prostate Cancer
Peng Ji, PhD, Associate Professor, Dept of Pathology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Targeting Plek2 for the treatment of prostate cancer
Russell Szmulewitz, MD, Associate Professor University of Chicago Medicine
WEE1 is a novel therapeutic target to overcome SOX2-mediated androgen receptor signaling inhibitor (ARSI) resistance in prostate cancer
C. Shad Thaxton, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Dept of Urology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Targeted Delivery of PIK-75/ F7 to Prostate Cancer Cells
Jindan Yu, MD, PhD, Professor, Dept of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Therapeutic targeting of CBP/p300 in prostate cancer with HOXB13 loss-of-function
Contact Us
To learn more or to apply for the DRP award, please contact Robin Leikin, PhD.