Photo by National Cancer Institute/ Unsplash
Israel Startup Nation is known for all of its advances in high tech. But Israel is also a center of medical research and the country has seen major breakthroughs in a variety of areas over the years.
Here now is Jewish Business News’ list of the top Seven medical stories from Israel in 2023.
New Computational Genetic Model To Predict Breast Cancer
In August Israeli researchers from Tel Aviv University revealed that they developed a computational model that makes it possible to predict each woman’s genetic risk of developing breast cancer based on her genetic profile. The new computational model, they say, will allow, for the first time in Israel, the determination of a personal genetic risk score for breast cancer based on the genetic profile of each woman. This development could form the basis for the implementation of a personalized early detection policy – women at high risk of breast cancer will be advised to start screening tests for early detection from a younger age, and more frequently.
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The research was based on a large-scale international study that included genomic data of about a quarter of a million women with and without breast cancer and applied its findings to about 2000 Israeli women.
Breakthrough In Immunity Research
Also in August, Israeli researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science discovered a new immune strategy that protects bacteria and more advanced species, from coral to bees.
In their study, the researchers focused on a gene that had caught their attention – one that had mysteriously nullified a phage’s ability to replicate itself and infect the rest of the colony. The scientists revealed that the mystery gene encodes a protein that cuts up and permanently destroys ATP molecules, thereby denying the invasive phage the energy it needs to reproduce itself. The result is an effective immune strategy. The researchers deduced that the gene plays a key role in bacterial immune systems: In its absence, phages that infected the bacteria replicated 100 times faster.
Dr. François Rousset and Prof. Rotem Sorek (Weizmann Institute)
Israeli Researchers Make Lifelike Human Embryo Models In Lab
In September a team of scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel revealed that they created lifelike human embryo models in the lab. The models, which were grown outside the womb for up to 14 days, have all the structures and compartments of a real embryo, including the placenta, yolk sac, and chorionic sac.
This is a major breakthrough in stem cell research, and it could profoundly impact our understanding of human development and the treatment of infertility and miscarriage.
Professor Jacob Hanna’s team persuaded stem cells to differentiate into the various cell types that make up an embryo by using a method known as directed differentiation. They then cultured the cells in a special medium that mimicked the womb’s environment.
Cancer Alters Cellular Waste-Processing Machinery
Also in September a study by Prof. Yifat Merbl’s team at the Weizmann Institute of Science that delved deep into the cellular source of antigens – the waste-processing machinery known as the proteasome – and discovered a previously unknown mechanism that allows cancer cells to slip by immune system defenses, was released. Their findings were published in Nature Cancer.
The human body’s immune system uses its judgment to identify dangerous cellular profiles. Immune cells patrol the body and check out protein pieces called antigens, which are presented on the surface of cells when proteins are broken down. If an antigen pattern looks suspicious, the immune system “hits delete” and destroys the cell.
Professor Michael Glickman, Mahasen Sarji,Dr. Inbal Maniv and Anwar Bdraneh.(Technion spokesperson’s office
Understanding The Onset Of Sporadic Alzheimer’s Disease
In October researchers at Israel’s Technion in Haifa made a major breakthrough in understanding the onset of sporadic Alzheimer’s Disease; they uncovered the mechanism that causes the accumulation of proteins involved in the disease’s development. Sporadic Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form, occurring in people with no family members who have suffered from it as well.
The study of Alzheimer’s Disease was led by Professor Michael Glickman and Dr. Inbal Maniv from the Faculty of Biology at the Technion and their results were Published in Nature Communications.
Israeli Scientists Produced New Revolutionary Optical Sensing Device
Also in October, Prof. Doron Naveh and his team at Bar-Ilan University revealed they developed a small device that aims to replace large and complex optical sensing devices that can be used to measure blood sugar levels on smartphones. This device is still in the proof-of-concept stage, but it has the potential to revolutionize the way that people with diabetes manage their condition, and so much more.
The device is a tiny AI-powered component optical sensing device that can be used to conduct a variety of tests with personal devices is a significant breakthrough. This technology has the potential to revolutionize the way we monitor our health and well-being, as well as the way we interact with the world around us.
Parasites Have Benefits
Tel Aviv University researchers found that parasites can actually be a benefit to many different forms of life in nature. This is in spite of their generally negative image as destructive. Parasites, say the scientists, can have a positive effect on biodiversity and a crucial role in maintaining it.
The researchers explained that in a healthy ecosystem, there is usually a wide variety of species living side by side. Related species are able to exist in the same habitat provided that they influence and are influenced differently by natural resources and predators. Without proper separation and balance between those species, they cannot coexist – one of the species will be driven to extinction by the other. This principle is termed the ‘competitive exclusion principle’, also known as Gause’s law.
