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.
Apr 07, 2020... Prof. Alon Chen – president of the Weizmann Institute and a leading neurobiologist who studies mental health – shares a two-part presentation in this videoconference with American Committee supporters.
Apr 28, 2020... Dr. Ori Avinoam of Weizmann’s Department of Biomolecular Sciences presents an overview of his lab’s coronavirus research. His team has created a pseudovirus, which has all the elements of the coronavirus but is not infectious.
May 06, 2020... A year and a half ago, biochemist Prof. Ruth Arnon, Israel Prize recipient for medicine and past president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, received an email from the editor of a science journal. The editor asked whether she planned to attend a conference on multiple sclerosis that was to take place a few days later. Arnon, who was one of the scientists responsible for the research that led to the MS treatment, Copaxone, said she wouldn’t be attending, but was sending a researcher from her lab at the Weizmann Institute of Science.
Jun 02, 2020... In this special update from his home in New York City, CEO Dave Doneson discusses the Weizmann Institute’s remarkable coronavirus response. Dave shares how the Institute has rapidly shifted its focus to address the pandemic, transforming into one of the world’s leading hubs of COVID-19 research. Weizmann scientists are fighting this disease on a variety of fronts, offering hope and optimism for us all.
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.”
Nov 16, 2020...
When Mikael Dolsten, the head scientist at Pfizer, heard the news last week that the COVID-19 vaccine that he has been helping to develop for the better part of a year was over 90% effective, he and his colleagues literally leapt with joy at a corporate office in Connecticut.
“This may turn out to be one of the biggest medical advances of the past 100 years,” Dolsten said by Zoom from his home office last week, the emotion clear in his voice and on his face.
Sep 30, 2018... Rotem Sorek got his PhD studying human genetics, but he soon learned his true affinity was for microbes. Sorek started his doctoral research around the time that the human genome was being decoded, and he found the field exciting. But as he was finishing his dissertation, scientists were just beginning to crack the genetic code of numerous microbial genomes. The sheer number of microbes with genomes still to be explored proved more enticing to Sorek than the singular human genome.
Mar 23, 2021... How did scientists develop an effective vaccine for Covid-19 in less than a year? In this webinar, the American Committee welcomed Dr. Mikael Dolsten, Chief Scientific Officer and President, Worldwide Research, Development, and Medical at Pfizer. In conversation with former American Committee President and renowned AIDS researcher Dr. Jay Levy, Dr. Dolsten shed light on the breakthroughs that enabled his team, in collaboration with researchers around the world, to produce a viable vaccine at such an extraordinary speed. He also shared his own scientific journey, including the transformative semester he spent at the Weizmann Institute as a PhD student. During a dynamic Q&A led by CEO Dave Doneson, Dr. Dolsten discussed the role of basic science in advancing lifesaving technologies and treatments.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/could-one-shot-kill-the-flu/
Nov 22, 2021... Renowned Weizmann scientist, Prof. Ruth Arnon, recently spoke to the New Yorker Magazine about a universal flu vaccine. Arnon joined the Institute in 1960 and has devoted her career to pioneering groundbreaking medications and vaccines. As Chair of BiondVax’s Scientific Advisory Board—an Israeli biopharmaceutical company developing a universal flu vaccine—and as the Paul Ehrlich Chair in Immunochemistry at the Weizmann, she is globally recognized as a leading expert in her field. Few scientists working today have the decades of rich experience Arnon still brings to the table.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/2022-breakthroughs-of-the-year/
Dec 08, 2022...
Today, The Atlantic reveals its inaugural 10 Breakthroughs of the Year. The accomplishments span every station of life, from birth to death, and every component, from our cells to the stars. They include a drug that revives the organs of dead animals; an embryo created without sperm or egg; a telescope to see the universe’s first moments; and an AI that conjures award-winning art.
One theme of this year’s list is the principle of “twin ideas”—the tendency for major breakthroughs to have more than one author. The telegraph was invented by Charles Wheatstone and Samuel Morse in the same year, 1837, and patents for the telephone were filed by Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell on the same day in 1876. Accordingly, many of this year’s breakthroughs are group efforts rather than individual awards. We didn’t just get one mind-blowing generative AI app this year; we got several in the span of a few months. We didn’t just get one “unheard-of” cancer breakthrough; we got several in one year. In this golden age of new vaccine technology, many different companies are building off the success of the COVID shots to deliver new antiviral weaponry for humankind.
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