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 future of humanity.
Dec 10, 2015...
Prof. Michal Schwartz
CHARLESTON, S.C., Dec. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — NeuroQuest Development Center, Inc., today announced they have entered into a service agreement with the University of California, San Diego for collection and processing of blood samples for their U.S. clinical validation trials.
The South Carolina-based biotech company is developing a blood test for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Jun 02, 2007... Prof. Doron Lancet of the Department of Molecular Genetics at the Weizmann Institute of Science is one of Israel's most prominent genome researchers. The head of the Crown Human Genome Center, Prof. Lancet has directed research on DNA chips, disease genes, and genes responsible for smell and taste, and is currently working to develop a computational model for the origin of life on earth. Because the Weizmann Institute was Israel's liaison to the international Human Genome Project, Prof. Lancet and his colleagues have unusually intimate knowledge of the field of genomics and its implications.
Nov 12, 2013...
Image of a neuronal spine from Prof. Menahem Segal’s lab, which uses time-lapse photography to view living, cultured neurons in a confocal laser scanning microscope.
One in 10 Americans over the age of 65 has Alzheimer’s disease, a debilitating neurological disorder that slowly destroys memory and cognitive function and for which there is no cure. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), because the risk of developing the disease increases with age and more people are living longer, the number of people suffering from Alzheimer’s is likely to grow dramatically.
Jan 02, 2006... In 2002 a clinical trial of an experimental Alzheimer's vaccine was halted when a few patients began experiencing brain inflammation, a result of the immune system mounting an attack against the body. Now some researchers claim that inducing a mild autoimmune reaction could actually protect the central nervous system from a spectrum of neurodegenerative conditions, from glaucoma and spinal cord injury to Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. "This is a hot-button issue right now," says Howard Gendelman of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/prof-michal-schwartz-will-change-your-mind/
Sep 22, 2015... September 21st is World Alzheimer’s Day – and, not coincidentally, the release date for Prof. Michal Schwartz’s new book. Published by Yale University Press, Neuroimmunity: A New Science That Will Revolutionize How We Keep Our Bodies Healthy and Young not only presents her game-changing work on the immune system’s connection to the brain, but brings to life her extraordinary journey as a woman in science.
May 01, 2007...
New techniques developed by Weizmann Institute scientists in Rehovot, Israel, to study molecules in action may hold the key to cures for cancer and Alzheimer's disease. In fact, the first steps have already been taken to minimize the uncontrolled proliferation and spread of cancer cells.
At first glance, cancer and Alzheimer's disease appear to have little in common. Cancer is a group of over a hundred diseases in which cells grow out of control and spread throughout the body. Alzheimer's is a progressive neurodegenerative disease caused by the abnormal buildup of protein in the brain. The common link between the diseases is the role played by enzymes called proteases, which cut long strands of protein into fragments. Cancer cells secrete proteases that dissolve collagen, creating holes in the surrounding cell matrix that enable the cancer cells to bulldoze their way through tissue and into other cells. In Alzheimer's disease, insoluble fragments of a protein snipped from a larger protein by proteases accumulate in the brain, interfering with cognitive function and memory.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/rethinking-the-aging-brain/
Oct 01, 2006...
A vaccination for slowing the brain’s aging process is the goal of Prof. Michal Schwartz of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Neurobiology Department. “At face value, it sounds like an impossible mission,” she says.
However, her research suggests that the immune system plays a critical role in maintaining a healthy brain and the renewal of brain cells. Consequently, boosting the immune system via a vaccination may one day help to prevent aging of the brain and perhaps slow down disease progression in the cases of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Dec 22, 2013...
In our recent “Top 12 most amazing Israeli medical advances”, we promised a top 10 list of the most exciting Israeli medical-device and pharmaceutical developments just around the corner.
Like the top 12, this list was also very difficult to narrow down, because Israeli breakthroughs in this field are a near-daily occurrence. Our top 10 is just the tip of the iceberg.
Watch for new health stories on ISRAEL21c every week for a broader picture of how Israeli ingenuity is changing the face of healthcare worldwide.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/science-tips-november-2014/
Nov 18, 2014... Satellite image of Olympus Mons on Mars, the largest volcano in the solar system at about three times the height of Mount Everest. Around 3.5 to 4 billion years ago, the release of volcanic gases, especially the greenhouse gas sulfur dioxide, may have warmed the surface of Mars episodically, melting the ice and thereby explaining the presence of geomorphological features indicative of the flow of water on the planet’s ancient surface.
Aug 13, 2020... Prof. Eran Hornstein, a member of the steering committee for Weizmann’s new Institute for Brain and Neural Sciences, discusses this important flagship project, which will bring together experts in multiple disciplines to understand mental illness, advance treatments for diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, and much more. He explains why Weizmann is in an ideal position to uncover the brain's mysteries, with more than 40 internationally renowned research groups dedicated to addressing the most pressing topics in neuroscience.
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