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.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/the-secret-social-lives-of-viruses/
Jun 18, 2019...
Illustration by Karol Banach
Geneticist Rotem Sorek could see that his bacteria were sick — so far, so good. He had deliberately infected them with a virus to test whether each ailing microbe soldiered on alone or communicated with its allies to fight the attack.
But when he and his team at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, looked into the contents of their flasks, they saw something completely unexpected: the bacteria were silent, and it was the viruses that were chattering away, passing notes to each other in a molecular language only they could understand. They were deciding together when to lie low in the host cell and when to replicate and burst out, in search of new victims.
Aug 27, 2019...
Xray of a patient with active pulmonary tuberculosis. Image by Shutterstock
Just as first impressions set the stage for the entire course of a relationship, first impressions set the stage for how the cells of our immune system react when meeting a new microbe, according to Israeli researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science.
This new insight led the researchers to develop an algorithm that may predict the onset of such diseases as tuberculosis. Their findings were published July 22 in Nature Communications.
Sep 27, 2019... Glioblastoma, a typically incurable brain cancer, is a master of diversity. Not only do the tumors differ from one patient to the next, but cells within each tumor differ greatly from one another. In a study published recently in Cell, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science, working in collaboration with Boston researchers and physicians, have found that glioblastoma cells come in as many as four “states,” or subtypes, and – as if that were not enough – these cells can transition from one state to another. These findings might help explain why glioblastoma is so difficult to treat and point toward ways of developing future therapies.
Jan 27, 2020...
When Weizmann Institute of Science Prof. Rivka Dikstein set out to study a gene regulating inflammation, she had no idea she’d find a promising route to developing a drug for Huntington’s disease.
Dikstein’s biomolecular sciences team focused on a gene called Spt5, which regulates how DNA is copied for manufacturing proteins. The scientists discovered that Spt5 plays a key role in inflammation.
Sep 11, 2019...
JERUSALEM, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) – Israeli scientists have developed a method that allows unprecedented observation of embryonic stem cell differentiation, the Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) reported Tuesday.
The study, published in the journal Molecular Cell, is another step in solving one of the great mysteries of life – a tiny ball of identical cells implants itself in the uterus, and somehow, these cells begin to differentiate – each heading for a different fate.
Apr 08, 2019... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—April 8, 2019—The project, led by Prof. Eran Segal and his team in the Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics and Department of Molecular Cell Biology, aims to use state-of-the-art artificial intelligence technologies to generate personalized predictions for disease risk factors. The 10K project is a longitudinal study designed to collect lifestyle and clinical data from 10,000 individuals who will be recruited from the Israeli population, and is suitable for Hebrew speakers only.
Jun 02, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—June 2, 2020—Cancer cells are comfy havens for bacteria. That conclusion arises from a rigorous study of over 1,000 tumor samples of different human cancers. The study, headed by researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science, found bacteria living inside the cells of all the cancer types – from brain to bone to breast cancer – and even identified unique populations of bacteria residing in each type of cancer. The research suggests that understanding the relationship between a cancer cell and its “mini-microbiome” may help predict the potential effectiveness of certain treatments or may point, in the future, to ways of manipulating those bacteria to enhance the actions of anticancer treatments. The findings of this study were published in Science and featured on the cover.
May 28, 2020...
The first comprehensive survey of the microorganisms that live inside tumours has found that bacteria reside in those from many different cancer types, but it is unclear whether they contribute to tumour growth.
These bacteria make up part of a tumour’s microbiome – the complex community of bacteria, fungi and other microbes that live inside it.
Bacteria have previously been found in tumours in the bowel and other tissues in the body that are routinely exposed to microbes. However, less is known about their presence in tumours from other cancers, like those of the bone, brain and ovary.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/video-gallery/stopping-future-viral-threats-and-covid-19/
Jul 16, 2020... “Viruses can be ill-mannered guests,” says Dr. Noam Stern-Ginossar, “freely helping themselves to the host’s cell machinery and using it to make more viruses.”
Aug 14, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—August 14, 2020—Something like a quarter of the world’s population suffers from chronic pain at some point. As opposed to acute pain – for example, that feeling after hitting your finger with a hammer – chronic pain may not even have a clear cause, and it can linger for years or lifetimes. The burden of chronic pain includes damage to mental and physical health, lower productivity, and drug addiction. Now, a study led by researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science suggests an original approach to treating this affliction by targeting a key gateway – one that leads to the activation of genes in the peripheral nerve cells that are involved in many forms of chronic pain. The findings of this study were published in Science.
©2022 American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science
