Investigator Awards
The Santa Cruz Biotechnology
INVESTIGATOR AWARD
recognizes excellence
in research.
INVESTIGATOR AWARD
recognizes excellence
in research.
Submitted papers are
reviewed to assess:
- Scientific Significance
- Scientific Impact
- Experiment Design
- Publication Integrity and Quality
One winner is chosen each year in January.
The winner will be selected from papers published within the previous year.
The winner will be selected from papers published within the previous year.
How to Apply:
- Submit your accepted paper (1st author) referencing the use of any Santa Cruz Biotechnology product.
- Submit a product review for one or more products used in the paper.
Awards
- The winner receives 5000 Santa Cruz Biotechnology Cruz CreditsTM, which can be applied towards future product purchases or special promotions.
- All entrants receive 375 Santa Cruz Biotechnology Cruz CreditsTM (USD equivalent); learn more about Cruz CreditsTM.
JANUARY 2021 Santa Cruz Biotechnology Investigator Award Nominee
CONGRATULATIONS,
Wei Li!
Wei Li!
Wei Li is the first author selection from 301 applicants for nomination to receive the January 2021 Investigator Award:
Wei Li, Jing Hu, Bi Shi, Francesco Palomba, Michelle A. Digman, Enrico Gratton & Hao Jiang: Biophysical properties of AKAP95 protein condensates regulate splicing and tumorigenesis. Nature Cell Biology. 2020. 22:960–972. PMID: 32719551
Abstract
It remains unknown if biophysical or material properties of biomolecular condensates regulate cancer. Here we show that AKAP95, a nuclear protein that regulates transcription and RNA splicing, plays an important role in tumorigenesis by supporting cancer cell growth and suppressing oncogene-induced senescence. AKAP95 forms phase-separated and liquid-like condensates in vitro and in nucleus. Mutations of key residues to different amino acids perturb AKAP95 condensation in opposite directions. Importantly, the activity of AKAP95 in splice regulation is abolished by disruption of condensation, significantly impaired by hardening of condensates, and regained by substituting its condensation-mediating region with other condensation-mediating regions from irrelevant proteins. Moreover, the abilities of AKAP95 in regulating gene expression and supporting tumorigenesis require AKAP95 to form condensates with proper liquidity and dynamicity. These results link phase separation to tumorigenesis and uncover an important role of appropriate biophysical properties of protein condensates in gene regulation and cancer.
Previous SCBT Investigator Award Winners
JANUARY 2021Wei Li |
Wei Li, Jing Hu, Bi Shi, Francesco Palomba, Michelle A. Digman, Enrico Gratton & Hao Jiang: Biophysical properties of AKAP95 protein condensates regulate splicing and tumorigenesis. Nature Cell Biology. 2020. 22:960–972. PMID: 32719551 |
JANUARY 2020Maiwen Caudron-Herger |
Caudron-Herger M, Rusin SF, Adamo ME, Seiler J, Schmid VK, Barreau E, Kettenbach AN, Diederichs S. R-DeeP: Proteome-wide and Quantitative. Identification of RNA-Dependent Proteins by Density Gradient Ultracentrifugation. Mol Cell. 2019 Jul 11;75(1):184-199. PMID: 31076284 |
JANUARY 2019Sanjay Awasthi |
Awasthi S, Tompkins J, Singhal J, Riggs AD, Yadav S, Wu X, Singh S, Warden C, Liu Z, Wang J, Slavin TP, Weitzel JN, Yuan YC, Awasthi M, Srivastava SK, Awasthi YC, Singhal SS. Rlip depletion prevents spontaneous neoplasia in TP53 null mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018 Apr 10;115(15):3918-3923. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1719586115. Epub 2018 Mar 23. PubMed PMID: 29572430; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5899455. |
JANUARY 2018Li Jiang |
Jiang L, Shao C, Wu QJ, Chen G, Zhou J, Yang B, Li H, Gou LT, Zhang Y, Wang Y, Yeo GW, Zhou Y, Fu XD. NEAT1 scaffolds RNA-binding proteins and the Microprocessor to globally enhance pri-miRNA processing. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2017 Oct;24(10):816-824. doi: 10.1038/nsmb.3455. Epub 2017 Aug 28. PubMed PMID: 28846091. |
JANUARY 2017Marta N. Shahbazi |
Shahbazi MN, Jedrusik A, Vuoristo S, Recher G, Hupalowska A, Bolton V, Fogarty NM, Campbell A, Devito LG, Ilic D, Khalaf Y, Niakan KK, Fishel S, Zernicka-Goetz M. Self-organization of the human embryo in the absence of maternal tissues. Nat Cell Biol. 2016 Jun;18(6):700-8. PubMed PMID: 27144686 |
JANUARY 2016Nesrine Abboud |
Abboud N, Moore-Morris T, Hiriart E, Yang H, Bezerra H, Gualazzi MG, Stefanovic S, Guénantin AC, Evans SM, Pucéat M. A cohesin-OCT4 complex mediates Sox enhancers to prime an early embryonic lineage. Nat Commun. 2015 Apr 8;6:6749. PMID: 25851587 |
JULY 2015Tobias Wagner |
Wagner T, Kiweler N, Wolff K, Knauer SK, Brandl A, Hemmerich P, Dannenberg JH, Heinzel T, Schneider G, Krämer OH. Sumoylation of HDAC2 promotes NF-κB-dependent gene expression. Oncotarget. 2015 Mar 30;6(9):7123-35. PubMed PMID: 25704882; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4466673. |
JANUARY 2015Norman Ertych |
Ertych N, Stolz A, Stenzinger A, Weichert W, Kaulfuß S, Burfeind P, Aigner A, Wordeman L, Bastians H. Increased microtubule assembly rates influence chromosomal instability in colorectal cancer cells. Nat Cell Biol. 2014 Aug;16(8):779-91. PubMed PMID: 24976383. |
JULY 2014Michelino Di Rosa |
Di Rosa M, Tibullo D, Vecchio M, Nunnari G, Saccone S, Di Raimondo F, Malaguarnera L. Determination of chitinases family during osteoclastogenesis. Bone. 2014 Apr;61:55-63.PMID: 24440516. |
JANUARY 2014Daniel Martinez Molina |
Daniel Martinez Molina, Rozbeh Jafari, Marina Ignatushchenko, Takahiro Seki, E. Andreas Larsson, Chen Dan, Lekshmy Sreekumar, Yihai Cao, Pär Nordlund. Monitoring Drug Target Engagement in Cells and Tissues Using the Cellular Thermal Shift Assay. Science. 2013 July 5;341(6141):84-87. PMID: 23828940 |
JULY 2013Simona Morone |
Morone S, Lo-Buono N, Parrotta R, Giacomino A, Nacci G, Brusco A, Larionov A, Ostano P, Mello-Grand M, Chiorino G, Ortolan E, Funaro A. Overexpression of CD157 contributes to epithelial ovarian cancer progression by promoting mesenchymal differentiation. PLoS One. 2012;7(8):e43649. PMID: 22916288 |
JANUARY 2013Pol Margalef |
Margalef P, Fernández-Majada V, Villanueva A, Garcia-Carbonell R, Iglesias M, López L, Martínez-Iniesta .M, Villà-Freixa J, Mulero MC, Andreu M, Torres F, Mayo MW, Bigas A, Espinosa L. A Truncated Form of IKKα Is Responsible for Specific Nuclear IKK Activity in Colorectal Cancer. Cell Reports. 2012 October 25; 2(4):840-854. PMID: 23041317 |
JULY 2012Maria Rosaria Amoroso |
Amoroso MR, Matassa DS, Laudiero G, Egorova AV, Polishchuk RS, Maddalena F, Piscazzi A, Paladino S, Sarnataro D, Garbi C, Landriscina M, Esposito F. TRAP1 and the proteasome regulatory particle TBP7/Rpt3 interact in the endoplasmic reticulum and control cellular ubiquitination of specific mitochondrial proteins. Cell Death Differ. 2012 19(4):592-604. PMID 21979464. |
JANUARY 2012Bilal Hafeez |
Bilal Bin Hafeez, Weixiong Zhong, Jamey Weichert, Nancy E. Dreckschmidt, Mohammad Sarwar Jamal, Ajit K. Verma. Genetic ablation of PKC epsilon inhibits prostate cancer development and metastasis in transgenic mouse model of prostate adenocarcinoma. Cancer Res. 2011 71(6):2318-2327. PMID 21406403. |
JULY 2011Chih-Hsin Tang |
Chih-Hsin Tang, Cheng-Fong Chen, Wei-Ming Chen, Yi-Chin Fong. IL-6 Increases MMP-13 Expression and Motility in Human Chondrosarcoma Cells. J Biol Chem. 2011 286(13):11056-66. PMID: 21278254 |
JANUARY 2011Prerna Kumar |
Prerna Kumar, Renu Garg, Gevoni Bolden, Kailash N. Pandey. Interactive roles of Ets-1, Sp1, and acetylated histones in the retinoic acid-dependent activation of guanylyl cyclase/atrial natriuretic peptide receptor-A gene transcription. J Biol Chem. 2010 285(48):37521-37530. PMID: 20864529 |
JULY 2010Barbara Bellei |
Barbara Bellei, Vittoria Maresca, Enrica Flori, Angela Pitisci, Lionel Larue, Mauro Picardo. p38 regulates pigmentation via proteasomal degradation of tyrosinase. J Biol Chem. 2010 Mar 5;285(10):7288-99. PMID 20053998 |
JANUARY 2010Pan-Yue Deng |
Pan-Yue Deng, Zhaoyang Xiao, Chuanxiu Yang, Lalida Rojanathammanee, Laurel Grisanti, John Watt, Jonathan D. Geiger, Rugao Liu, James E. Porter and Saobo Lei. GABAB Receptor Activation Inhibits Neuronal Excitability and Spatial Learning in the Entorhinal Cortex by Activating TREK-2 K+ Channels. Neuron 2009 63(2):230-243. PMID: 19640481 |
JULY 2009Richard Tomasini |
Richard Tomasini, Katsuya Tsuchihara, Chiharu Tsuda, Suzanne K. Lau, Margareta Wilhelm, Alessandro Ruffini, Ming-sound Tsao, Juan L. Iovanna, Andrea Jurisicova, Gerry Melino, and Tak W. Mak. TAp73 regulates the spindle assembly checkpoint by modulating BubR1 activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009 106(3):797-802. PMID: 19139399 |
JANUARY 2009Ning Ding |
Ning Ding, Haiying Zhou, Pierre-Olivier Esteve, Hang Gyeong Chin, Seokjoong Kim, Xuan Xu, Sumy M. Joseph, Michael J. Friez, Charles E. Schwartz, Sriharsa Pradhan and Thomas G. Boyer. Mediator links epigenetic silencing of neuronal gene expression with x-linked mental retardation. Molecular Cell. 2008 31:347-359. PMID: 18691967 |
JULY 2008Melissa R. Junttila |
Junttila MR, Puustinen P, Niemelä M, Ahola R, Arnold H, Böttzauw T, Ala-aho R, Nielsen C, Ivaska J, Taya Y, Lu SL, Lin S, Chan EK, Wang XJ, Grènman R, Kast J, Kallunki T, Sears R, Kähäri VM, Westermarck J. CIP2A inhibits PP2A in human malignancies. Cell. 2007 Jul 13;130(1):51-62. PMID: 17632056 |
JANUARY 2008Kwang Seok Ahn |
Ahn, K.S., Sethi, G., Krishnan, K. and Aggarwal, B.B. Gamma-tocotrienol inhibits nuclear factor-kappaB signaling pathway through inhibition of receptor-interacting protein and TAK1 leading to suppression of antiapoptotic gene products and potentiation of apoptosis. 2007. J. Biol. Chem. 282:809-820. PMID: 17114179 |
JULY 2007Young-Gun Yoo |
Yoo, Y.G., Na, T.Y., Yang, W.K., Kim, H.J., Lee, I.K., Kong, G., Chung, J.H. and Lee, M.O. 2006. 6-Mercaptopurine, an activator of Nur77, enhances transcriptional activity of HIF-1alpha resulting in new vessel formation. Oncogene 26: 3823-3834. |
JANUARY 2007Ayyakkannu Ayyanan |
Ayyanan A, Civenni G, Ciarloni L, Morel C, Mueller N, Lefort K, Mandinova A, Raffoul W, Fiche M, Dotto GP, Brisken C. Increased Wnt signaling triggers oncogenic conversion of human breast epithelial cells by a Notch-depedent mechanism. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 2006. 103:3799-3804. |
JULY 2006Vadim Budagian |
Budagian V, Bulanova E, Orinska Z, Thon L, Mamat U, Bellosta P, Basilico C, Adam D, Paus R, Bulfone-Paus S. A promiscuous liaison between IL-15 receptor and Axl receptor tyrosine kinase in cell death control. EMBO J. 2005 Dec 21;24(24):4260-70. Epub 2005 Nov 24. |
JANUARY 2006Irina Kratchmarova |
Irina Kratchmarova, Blagoy Blagoev, Mandana Haack-Sorensen, Moustapha Kassem, Matthias Mann1. Mechanism of Divergent Growth Factor Effects in Mesenchymal Stem Cell Differentiation. Science. 2005 Jun 3; 308(5727):1472-7. |
JULY 2005Maen Abdeirahim |
Abdelrahim, M., Lui, S., and Safe, S. 2005. Induction of Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)-Induced Stress Genes in Panc-1 Pancreatic Cancer Cells is Dependent on Sp Proteins. J Biol Chem. 280(16):16508-13 |
JANUARY 2005J. L. Lavrrar |
Lavrrar JL and Farnham PJ. 2004. The use of transient chromatin immunoprecipitation assays to test models for E2F1-specific transcriptional activation. J Biol. Chem. 2004 279:46343-46349. |
JULY 2004Masako Miura |
Miura, M., Gronthos, S., Zhao, M., Lu, B., Fisher, LW., Robey, PG., and Shi, S. 2003. SHED: stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth. PNAS USA. 100(10):5807-5812 |
JANUARY 2004Sarah P. Thayer |
Sarah P. Thayer, Pasca di Magliano, P., Heiser, P., Nielson, C., Roberts, D., Lauwers, G., Qi, Y., Gysin, S., Fernndez-del Castillo, C., Yajnik, V., Antoniu, B., McMahon, M., Warshaw, A., and Hebrok, M. 2003. Hedgehog is an early and late mediator of pancreatic cancer tumorigenesis. Nature. 425:851-856 |
JULY 2003Marina Macias-Silva |
Marina Macias-Silva, Li, W., Leu, L.I., Crissey, S. M.A., and Taub, R. 2002. Up-regulated transcriptional repressors SnoN and Ski Bind Smad proteins to antagonize transforming growth factor- signals during liver regeneration. J. Biol. Chem. 277: 28483-28490. |
JANUARY 2003Nigel Carter |
Carter, N., Nakamoto, T., Hirai, H., and Hunter, T. 2002. EphrinA1-induced cytoskeletal re-organization requires FAK and p130(cas). Nat. Cell Biol. 4: 565-573. |
JULY 2002A.S. Weinmann |
Weinmann, A.S., Bartley, S.M., Zhang, T., Zhang, .MQ., and Farnham, P.J. 2001. Use of chromatin immunoprecipitation to clone novel E2F target promoters. Mol. Cell. Biol. 21: 6820-6832. |
JANUARY 2002Olivier Nicole |
Olivier Nicole, Fabian Docagne, Carine Ali, Isabelle Margaill, Peter Carmeliet, Eric T. MacKenzie, Denis Vivien and Alain Buisson. 2001. The proteolytic activity of tissue-plasminogen activator enhances NMDA receptor-mediated signaling. Nature Medicine. 7: 59-64. |
JULY 2001Yan-Hong Zhang |
Yan-Hong Zhang, Antoinette Heulsmann, M. Mehrdad Tondravi, Aditi Mukherjee, and Yousef Abu-Amer. 2001. Tumor Necrosis Factor- (TNF) Stimulates RANKL-induced Osteoclastogenesis via Coupling of TNF Type 1 Receptor and RANK Signaling Pathways. J. Biol. Chem. 276: 563-568. |
JANUARY 2001Giulia Guarguaglini |
Giulia Guarguaglini, Luigina Renzi, Filippo D'Ottavio, Barbara Di Fiore, Martina Casenghi, Enrico Cundari, and Patrizia Lavia. 2000. Regulated Ran-binding Protein 1 Activity Is Required for Organization and Function of the Mitotic Spindle in Mammalian Cells in Vivo. Cell Growth & Differentiation Vol. 11: 455-465 |
JULY 2000Hui Miao |
Hui Miao, Elisabeth Burnett, Michael Kinch, Erin Simon, and Bingcheng Wang. 2000. Activation of EphA2 kinase suppresses integrin function and causes focal-adhesion-kinase dephosphorylation. Nature Cell Biology 2: 62-69. |
JANUARY 2000Hongwu Chen |
Hongwu Chen, Richard J. Lin, Wen Xie, Damien Wilpitz, and Ronald M. Evans. 1999. Regulation of Hormone-Induced Hyperacetylation and Gene Activation via Acetylation of an Acetylase. Cell 98: 675-686. |
JULY 1999Jan Karlseder |
Jan Karlseder, Dominique Broccoli, Yumin Dai, Stephen Hardy and Titia de Lange. 1999. p53- and ATM-Dependent Apoptosis Induced by Telomeres Lacking TRF2. Science 283: 1321-1325. |
JANUARY 1999Shoji Yamaoka |
Shoji Yamaoka, Gilles Courtois, Christine Bessia, Simon T. Whiteside, Robert Weil, Fabrice Agou, Heather E. Kirk, Robert J. Kay, and Alain Isral. 1998. Complementation Cloning of NEMO, a Component of the IB Kinase Complex Essential for NF-B ActivationK. Cell 93: 1231-1240. |
JULY 1998Robin X. Luo |
Robin X. Luo, Antonio A. Postigo, and Douglas C. Dean. 1998. Rb Interacts with Histone Deacetylase to Repress Transcription. Cell 92: 463-473. |
JANUARY 1998Catherine H. Regnier |
Catherine H. Regnier, Ho Yeong Song, Xiong Gao, David V. Goeddel, Zhaodan Cao, and Mike Rothe. 1997. Identification and Characterization of an IB Kinase. Cell 90: 373-383. |
JULY 1997Frank S. Lee |
Jeremiah Hagler, Zhigian J. Chen, and Tom Maniatis. 1997. Activation of the IB Kinase Complex by MEKK1, a Kinase of the JNK Pathway. Cell 88: 213-222. |
JANUARY 1997Daniel J. Van Antwerp |
Daniel J. Van Antwerp, Seamus J. Martin, Tal Kafri, Douglas R. Green and Inder M. Verma. 1996. Suppression of TNF--induced apoptosis by NF-B. Science 274: 787-789. |
JULY 1996Shuqian Jing |
Shuqian Jing, Duanzhi Wen, Yanbin Yu, Paige L. Holst, Yi Luo, Mei Fang, Rami Tamir, Laarni Antonio, Zheng Hu, Rod Cupples, Jean-Claude Louis, Sylvia Hu, Bruce W. Altrock and Gary M. Fox. 1996. GDNF-induced activation of the Ret protein tyrosine kinase is mediated by GDNFR-, a novel receptor for GDNF. Cell 85: 1113-1124. |
JANUARY 1996Omar A. Coso |
Omar A. Coso, Mario Chiariello, Jin-Chen Yu, Hidemi Teramoto, Piero Crespo, Ningzhi Xu, Toru Miki, and J. Silvio Gutkind. 1995. The small GTP-binding proteins Rac1 and Cdc42 regulate the activity of the JNK/SAPK signaling pathway. Cell 81: 1137-1146. |
JULY 1995David D. Schlaepfer |
David D. Schlaepfer, Steven K. Hanks, Tony Hunter, and Peter van der Geer. 1994. Integrin-mediated signal transduction linked to Ras pathway by GRB2 binding to focal adhesion kinase. Nature 372: 786-791 |
JANUARY 1995Ellen Freed |
Ellen Freed, Marc Symons, Susan G. Macdonald, Frank McCormick, and Rosamaria Ruggieri. 1994. Binding of 14-3-3 proteins to the protein kinase Raf and effects on its activation. Science 265: 1713-1716. |