Roland Dunbrack Receives ASBMB DeLano Award

Rosetta Commons is delighted to celebrate Roland L. Dunbrack, Jr., recipient of the ASBMB DeLano Award for Computational Biosciences. This award honors scientists whose computational methods make molecular and cellular research both innovative and broadly accessible. Established in memory of Warren L. DeLano, the creator of PyMOL, it recognizes work that accelerates discovery across the life sciences.

Roland is a professor at Fox Chase Cancer Center and the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, where he co-leads the Cancer Signaling and Microenvironment Program and directs the Molecular Modeling Facility. Internationally recognized in computational structural biology, his research focuses on protein structure prediction and statistical analysis. His backbone-dependent rotamer library is a foundational tool in protein modeling and design. His group has also developed algorithms and databases for conformational classification, protein kinases, and prediction tools that are now widely used across the field.

Roland’s career is defined by collaboration, working closely with experimental scientists to apply computational insights to cancer research and serving as an assessor in the CASP experiments to help shape global standards. His honors already include the Senior Research Excellence Award, Temple’s LGBTQ+ Health Equity Leadership Award, and the Cheney Fellowship from the University of Leeds.

Reflecting on the honor, Roland shared: “I am deeply honored to receive the ASBMB DeLano Award… It is a privilege to contribute to a field built on innovation and collaboration.”