About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the benefit of humanity.
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—January 27, 2021—Chronic stress could be the prevailing condition of our time. In the short term, our jaws or stomachs may clench; in the long term, stress can lead to metabolic disease and speed up diseases of aging, as well as leading to more serious psychological disorders. The physical manifestations of stress originate in the brain, and they move along a so-called “stress axis” that ends in the adrenal glands. These glands then produce the hormone cortisol. When the stress axis is continually activated, changes occur in the cells and organs along the way, and the continual production of cortisol then substantially contributes to the symptoms of chronic stress.
January 27, 2021
Prof. Rony Paz, Head of the Department of Neurobiology, speaks about our still-mysterious brains. While they can do remarkable things, they also produce conditions such as PTSD, anxiety, autism, and the like – all of which are on the rise worldwide.
January 19, 2021
Prof. Maya Schuldiner of Weizmann’s Department of Molecular Genetics uses analogies to clarify the nature of cells. These tiny living beings are highly organized communities, and while there are different types – blood, skin, etc. – they have basically the same elements.
January 19, 2021
Prof. Karina Yaniv, Department of Biological Regulation, explains why it is so important to understand embryonic development. Across life forms, development is similar; in fact, it can be hard to distinguish between embryos from different species...
January 19, 2021
Prof. Alon Chen – who is not only the Weizmann Institute president, but a renowned neurobiologist – moderates Building the Future of Neuroscience. Neuroscience is a major area of focus for the Institute and the subject of a new flagship initiative.
January 12, 2021
As The Jerusalem Post reports, Weizmann scientists found the cause of a phenomenon in which blind people have visual hallucinations. The research also showed that the visual system humans use to see is active when we imagine.
January 09, 2021
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—January 7, 2021—Some people lose their eyesight, yet continue to “see.” This phenomenon, a kind of vivid visual hallucination, is named after Swiss doctor Charles Bonnet, who described in 1769 how his completely blind grandfather experienced intense, detailed visions of people, animals, and objects.
January 07, 2021
Scientific American writes about Prof. Noam Sobel’s research showing that how a pregnant woman responds to a man’s odor can lead to miscarriage.
December 08, 2020
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—November 5, 2020—Peculiar hybrid structures called retrons that are half RNA, half single-strand DNA are found in many species of bacteria. Since their discovery around 35 years ago, researchers have learned how to use retrons for producing single strands of DNA in the lab...
November 05, 2020
©2021 American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science