Newsroom – Page 35 – Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University

Scientific discovery may facilitate speedy, objective, and accurate diagnosis of the condition using saliva

Written by AUFTAU on 14 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

Scientific discovery may facilitate speedy, objective, and accurate diagnosis of the condition using saliva.

A scientific breakthrough from the Tel Aviv and Haifa Universities may facilitate speedy, objective, and accurate diagnosis of people suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder, PTSD, using saliva samples, as well as developing microbiotic related medications (associated with the body’s microbial ecology).

The study was a joint effort by eminent scholars from various fields. It was led by Professor Illana Gozes and included Professor Noam Shomron, Dr. Shlomo Sragovich and Ph.D. student Guy Shapira, (all from TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience) as well as Prof. Zahava Solomon from TAU’s Gershon H. Gordon Faculty of Social Sciences, and Prof. Abraham Sagi-Schwartz and PhD student Ella Levert-Levitt from the Center for the Study of Child Development and the School of Psychological Sciences at Haifa University. The study was published in NATURE‘s prestigious MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY magazine.

Diagnosing PTSD by Objective Criteria

The researchers tested a unique group of about 200 Israeli veteran soldiers (they all came from a larger cohort of subjects from a comprehensive four-decade-long study of veterans by Prof. Solomon) who had fought in the first Lebanon War in 1982. The test covered various psychological aspects, including sleep, appetite disorders, guilt, suicidal thoughts, social and spousal support, hostility, satisfaction with life, as well as issues of demographics, psychopathology, welfare, health, and education.

“We were surprised to discover that about a third of the PTSD subjects had never been diagnosed with post-trauma, so they never received any recognition from the Ministry of Defense and the official authorities.”

The researcher also collected saliva samples from them and comparing the results of the subjects’ microbial distribution to the psychological results and their responses to the welfare questionnaires, the researchers from the universities of Tel Aviv and Haifa found that people with PTSD and high psychopathological indications exhibit the same picture of bacteria in the saliva (a unique oral microbiotic signature).

According to the researchers, this study is significant in that for the first time, we might be able to diagnose post-trauma by objective criteria and not just behavioral ones.

One Third of Soldiers Were Undiagnosed

It is interesting to note here that the saliva bacteria of those exposed to air pollution showed a correlation to the picture with PTSD, while the number of years of education showed a protective influence and a reverse picture of the microbial ecology in the saliva.

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first depiction of a microbial signature in the saliva among veteran soldiers with PTSD,” says Prof. Illana Gozes. “We were surprised to discover that about a third of the PTSD subjects had never been diagnosed with post-trauma, so they never received any recognition from the Ministry of Defense and the official authorities.”

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first depiction of a microbial signature in the saliva among veteran soldiers with PTSD,”

“It must be stressed that until now, post-trauma diagnosis has been based solely on psychological and psychiatric measures. Thanks to this study, it may be possible, in the future, to use objective molecular and biological characteristics to distinguish PSTD sufferers, taking into account environmental influences. We hope that this new discovery and the microbial signatures described in this study might promote easier diagnosis of post-traumatic veteran soldiers so they can receive appropriate treatment.”

The study was also supported by IDF’s Medical Corps Department of Health and Well-Being and Dr. Ariel Ben Yehuda, former chief of the above Department and currently, a Department Manager in the Mental Health Medical Center in Shalvata, Clallit Health Services. The study also involved collaboration with the Charité University Medicine in Berlin and its microbiology experts Dr. Markus M. Heimesaat and Professor Stefan Bereswill, as well as with the University of Hong Kong, which is studying the effects of air pollution, Professors Victor Li and Jacqueline Lam.

Tiny Molecule Makes Big Impact on Cancer Treatment

Written by AUFTAU on 12 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

Researchers at Tel Aviv University and the University of Lisbon have discovered a potentially new immunotherapy, which may lead to more affordable and effective treatments. Immunotherapy activates the patient’s immune system to fight cancer cells.

In this significant step in the fight against cancer, the researchers used computational and bioinformatic systems to discover a tiny molecule which can enter a solid tumor. Thanks to its low molecular weight, the molecule outperforms existing antibodies that are used as the key component in many cancer immunotherapies today. The molecule is also small enough that it may one day be administered in a pill form, saving stressful and time-consuming trips to the hospital.

Behind the groundbreaking development is an international team of researchers led by Prof. Ronit Sachi-Fainaro, Director of the Center for Cancer Biology Research and Head of the Laboratory for Cancer Research and Nanomedicine at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University, along with Prof. Helena Florindo and Prof. Rita Guedes from the Research Institute for Medicines at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lisbon. The results of the study were published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer.

Making Effective Immunotherapy Accessible

Immunotherapies can significantly improve patient recovery rates, without the severe side effects that accompany treatments such as chemotherapy. Immunotherapies often make use of antibodies, which are similar to proteins produced by the immune system to destroy infection-causing organisms. However, while lab-grown antibodies created to fight cancer have demonstrated some success, they are costly and not always effective.

“I believe that in the future, the small molecule will be commercially available and will make immunotherapy affordable for cancer patients.”

Considering these challenges, TAU and University of Lisbon researchers used computational, bioinformatics and data analysis tools to evaluate thousands of molecular structures. They discovered a list of potential candidates and used the best structure they found to synthesize the new, small molecule which has successfully activated immune cells against cancer cells in lab models, including patient-derived ones.

The creation of this small molecule builds on the research of Nobel Prize winners James Allison and Tasuku Honjo, who originally developed the CTLA-4 and PD-1 antibodies, respectively, which are used in today’s cancer immunotherapies. The two discovered that immune cells are essentially disabled by particular proteins found in cancer and immune cells. The protein called PD-L1 is found in cancer cells, and paralyzes immune cells by binding to a protein on these cells called PD-1. Honjo’s antibodies neutralize the PD-1/PD-L1 protein bond, allowing the immune system to attack the cancer.

“Patients will probably be able to take it at home, orally, without the need for IV administration in the hospital.”

Prof. Satchi-Fainaro, head of the TAU research team and a 2020 Kadar Family Award winner, explains that whereas lab-grown antibodies have complex structures and are expensive to produce, the new molecule was synthesized with simple equipment at a low cost. “I believe that in the future, the small molecule will be commercially available and will make immunotherapy affordable for cancer patients.”

The small molecule is also better equipped to penetrate a solid tumor than previous treatments. The antibodies used for current treatments enter a tumor via its blood vessels. “If there are fewer blood vessels in a particular area of the tumor, the antibody will not be able to get inside. The small molecule, on the other hand, diffuses, and is therefore not entirely dependent on the tumor’s blood vessels or on its hyper-permeability,” says Prof. Satchi-Fainaro. “Another advantage of the small molecule is that it may be available in a format that patients will probably be able to take at home, orally, without the need for intravenous injections in the hospital.”

This work was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior (FCT-MCTES) and by The Israeli Ministry of Health under the frame of EuroNanoMed-II, “La Caixa” Foundation, Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro, the European Research Council (ERC), The Israel Science Foundation, The Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA), the Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) Professorship award and the Morris Kahn Foundation.

Featured image: Prof. Ronit Satchi-Fainaro in her lab

New Learning Method for People with Autism

Written by AUFTAU on 4 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

A new study from Tel Aviv University proposes a new learning method for people with autism that may accelerate the learning process and significantly improve capabilities in terms of visual perception. According to the researchers, improving the perceptual capacity of people with autism is often a challenge, and usually requires long and tedious training alongside additional learning challenges that characterizes autism, such as the ability to generalize learning to new situations.

The study was conducted by doctoral student Shira Klorfeld-Auslender and Prof. Nitzan Censor from the School of Psychological Sciences and the Sagol School of Neuroscience at Tel Aviv University, in collaboration with Prof. Ilan Dinstein and his team from Ben-Gurion University. The study was published in the journal Current Biology.

“A large part of learning does not happen in formal training settings but afterwards, through processes of assimilation and reinforcement of memory that occur in an ‘offline’ state; for example, when our brain is asleep.”

Longer Not Necessarily Better

The new method proposed by the researchers is based on utilizing “memory flashes,” by exposing a person for just a few seconds to a task that has already been learned. While standard teaching practice reinforce length and repetition of new skills, the new method improved both visual perception capabilities and the generalization of learning through helping the subjects excel in the same tasks, under different conditions.

“In my laboratory, we focus on the study of learning in humans, and we know that a large part of learning does not happen in formal training settings but afterwards, through processes of assimilation and reinforcement of memory that occur in an ‘offline’ state; for example, when our brain is asleep,” explains Prof. Censor.

“However, standard teaching methods still advocate an approach where longer practice equals better learning: if you want to play the piano, you should practice playing the piano for many hours every day until the playing becomes second nature to you. We have identified an alternative learning mechanism that uses ‘memory flashes’ – a brief exposure to a task that has already been learned –to assimilate and generalize skill developed.”

Prof. Nitzan Censor

Effective with Added Value

In the study, 30 high-functioning adults with autism were asked to learn a visual task (for example, identifying the direction of lines that appear for a few milliseconds on the screen). However, instead of repeating the task for a long time each day, the examinees in the main experimental group learned the task in depth on the first day, and in the following days they were exposed to the visual stimulus for only a few seconds. At the end of the process, although the study participants studied the task for a minimal amount of time, their performance improved significantly, by about 20–25%, which was a similar result to those subjected to multiple-repetition learning and to the achievements of subjects without autism.

“We have shown that it does not take prolonged practice time to assimilate the task – it is enough to flash it for a few seconds to stimulate the relevant brain network, and the brain will then assimilate the material on its own.”

Moreover, even when presented with the task under new conditions (for example, when the stimulus was learned in a new location), the examinees who learned with the memory flash method performed better than those in the control group – they knew how to generalize the skills learned in the first task. The participants’ success in generalizing the learning to other situations is considered significant, as these are skills that people with autism tend to struggle with.

“We have already proven in previous studies that processes of learning assimilation can be improved through flashes of memory,” says Prof. Censor. “We have shown that it does not take prolonged practice time to assimilate the task – it is enough to flash it for a few seconds to stimulate the relevant brain network, and the brain will then assimilate the material on its own.”

“In this case, we tested people with autism. People with autism often have difficulty learning and generalizing repetitive learning, that is, using tools that have also been learned when executing new tasks. Through short flashes of visual stimulus of a task learned, we were able to produce learning that is identical to repetitive learning in terms of its effectiveness; meaning, we significantly shortened the learning time. The added value is the ability to generalize: the examinees performed a task under new conditions, as if they had fully learned it. “

According to Prof. Censor, the new method may have significant potential implications in a wide range of areas. The new study could pave the way for more meaningful approaches to learning for people with autism, and in a wide variety of tasks. Moreover, the method may contribute to shorten rehabilitation after neurological injuries.

TAU to Switch to Sustainable Electricity within Two Years

Written by AUFTAU on 4 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

In a first among Israeli universities, Tel Aviv University announced its plans to switch entirely to renewable electricity within two years. The pledge comes following the completion of a comprehensive assessment of campus’ greenhouse gas emissions (direct and indirect), as part of initial steps in a 10-year plan towards carbon neutrality.

Comprehensive Evaluation

External company EcoTraders conducted the evaluation according to the GHG Protocol – a global standardized framework used to measure greenhouse gas emissions. The comprehensive report includes details on all campus facilities that are owned and operated by the University, including the Broshim and Einstein student dormitories. The carbon footprint of the University’s suppliers was also assessed – from electricity consumption on campus, to transportation and construction inputs, to the food served at conferences and cafeterias.

The report was conducted using the University’s 2019 emissions data as a baseline year reference, before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted many activities, resulting in a temporary reduction in emissions.

Moving towards Carbon Neutrality

“Tel Aviv University has decided to do its modest part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which is crucial for addressing the climate crisis,” says Prof. Ariel Porat, President of Tel Aviv University who also chairs TAU’s Green Campus Committee. “We intend to formulate a methodical and detailed 10-year plan, with the goal of attaining carbon neutrality further down the road. Our hope is to inspire other institutions in Israel and around the world to take similar actions, which, in addition, help educate the next generations about this important subject.”

Gady Frank, TAU’s Director-General adds, “We are working to make sure that in two years all the electricity produced on campus will be green. Currently, we have more than 5000 meters of photovoltaic cells, and our goal is to triple their amount on campus rooftops. In addition, we will install storage facilities, which will drastically increase the yield of these solar cells. The rest of the energy would be bought from private suppliers specializing in producing energy solely from green sources.”

“We intend to formulate a methodical and detailed 10-year plan, with the goal of attaining carbon neutrality further down the road. Our hope is to inspire other institutions in Israel and around the world to take similar actions.”

Green roof of TAU’s Porter building

Recruiting Experts

About a year ago, the University’s Green Campus Committee, led by President Prof. Ariel Porat and Director-General Gady Frank, appointed a team of academic and administrative experts to create a strategic plan with the goal of significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions on campus by encouraging more efficient use of resources and investing in renewable energy.

The team of experts hired EcoTraders to perform a baseline assessment of the overall carbon footprint of all TAU activities, on and off campus.

The team includes Prof. Marcelo Sternberg, Head of the Expert Team from George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences; Dr. Vered Blass and Dr. Orli Ronen – both of the Porter School of the Environment and Earth Sciences; Prof. Avi Kribus from the Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering; Ofer Lugassi, Deputy Director-General for Engineering and Maintenance; and Alon Sapan, Director of the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History.

Developing a Practical Plan

“We set out on this mission about a year and a half ago and decided that in order to lead real change on campus, we must conduct a thorough and comprehensive mapping of all of the University’s greenhouse gas emissions,” explains the team of experts. “This is a complex process that required the enlistment of many parties on campus, who agreed for the first time to share with us, and the authors of the report, information that had not been made public until now.”

Now, with the publication of the report’s findings, the expert team is developing a practical plan to reduce TAU campus’ greenhouse gas emissions, to be presented for discussion within the Green Campus Committee and subsequently submitted for approval by the University administration.

It is the first time that an Israeli university has taken this kind of action, and the experts are confident that other universities will follow in TAU’s footsteps.

“It is not trivial that the University is investing resources in collecting and analyzing the data – and it is even less trivial that the University is publishing this data – but we are committed to our strategic vision of striving to attain carbon neutrality in the future.”

Highlights from Report

According to the report, in 2019, Tel Aviv University was responsible for greenhouse gas emissions amounting to approximately 70,000 tons of carbon dioxide, 93% of which were indirect, with only 7% constituting direct energy-related emissions from the campus, mainly from its air-conditioning systems.

According to the report’s authors, the total indirect emissions are broken down as follows: Electricity consumption on campus (42%); waste production and management (11%); transportation (12%); food and beverage services (7%); construction and building maintenance inputs (4%); fuel and energy for the University’s facilities (4%); procurement (4%); computer and laboratory equipment (3%); other (6%).

Prof. Ariel Porat, President of Tel Aviv University

Strategic Cuts

Numbers published in 2021 show that Tel Aviv University is responsible for emitting 1.56 tons of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases per capita per year, compared to Yale University’s 8.2 tons, the University of Melbourne’s 2.7 tons, and the Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Germany’s 0.73 tons.

While the report shows that electricity consumption is the most polluting factor by far on TAU campus, reducing emissions generated from electricity consumption has so far not been an option, as the production method was determined by Israel’s Electric Corporation. However, this has changed. The experts say, “With the opening of the energy market, we plan to consider a transition from electricity suppliers that burn natural gas to suppliers that rely on renewable energy, and to expand the independent production of solar power within the campus.” When it comes to food procurement, the team will assess a variety of possibilities – from reducing the amount of food consumed, to precluding the ordering of meat products for events and kiosks.

The team concludes: “The new report lays down infrastructure that allows us to take a holistic view of the University’s total greenhouse gas emissions and identify the activities that cause the most pollution. This way, we can build comprehensive plans to reduce emissions from these activities in the short, medium, and long term. Moreover, the report will allow us to monitor and inspect the reduction in emissions over time and compare the numbers with the original values. It is not trivial that the University is investing resources in collecting and analyzing the data – and it is even less trivial that the University is publishing this data – but we are committed to our strategic vision of striving to attain carbon neutrality in the future.”

TAU’s French Culture Program Helps Propel Careers

Written by AUFTAU on 4 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

A vice-consul, a hi-tech worker, and a musician explain how the unique Program contributed to their professional accomplishments.

There’s something about Tel Aviv University’s French Culture Program (Hebrew website) of the Faculty of Humanities, a certain “je ne sais quoi,” which translates into happy graduates with exciting, wide-ranging – and perhaps even surprising – careers. Three young professionals, all graduates of the Program, tell us how it helped jump start their international careers.

First a few words about the Program, which allows you to discover the French language and the French culture at its highest level: You learn about intellectuals and artists who shaped the world as we know it today, from feminism to intellectuals streams, from democracy (liberté, égalité, fraternité) to avant-garde art and cinema. The Program offers both BA and MA studies, and during BA it’s a dual program, which means that students follow an additional program in parallel. Tu ne parles pas français? No problem. The classes are all taught in Hebrew by bilingual teaching staff. You learn French throughout the Program.

Work in Israel’s Foreign Ministry

Hanan Podolich, Vice-consul in the consular department of the Embassy of Israel in Paris: “Each day, my colleagues and I receive Israeli citizens and foreigners and provide them with consular services. I am the professional authority in the department, in charge of the smooth flow of the reception procedure, and I also cover for the Consul when he is absent,” explains Hanan, who holds a BA degree in French Culture and Linguistics from TAU’s French Culture Program.

“My studies helped me in two aspects: Firstly, and mainly, through the French language skills I acquired. While in the Program, I got to go abroad twice for summer school – the first time was in Vichy, France and the second was in Bruxelles, Belgium – to practice my French. It was incredibly reassuring to realize that I was capable of communicating with French speakers from all over the world. In my job, French facilitates the mutual understanding for both sides, especially when bureaucratic matters are at hand.”

“My studies made me more familiar with the huge Jewish-Franco-Israeli community in France. I came prepared.”

“Secondly, my studies made me more familiar with the huge Jewish-Franco-Israeli community in France. I came to Paris prepared. When speaking with people at the window, I already felt well ‘acquainted’ with them which allowed me to be more open to their needs.

The scholarships that I was given in order to participate in the summer schools helped me realize that I want to work with French speaking people and to showcase my country as well as I did with the young students I met during these summer schools sessions. In fact, it was thanks to those projects that I got in touch with the right people who later offered me the opportunity to work at the Embassy.”

Join Israeli Hi-Tech

Maya Aharon, Risk Analyst at hi-tech company Riskified: “The company’s main goal is to detect and prevent fraud in online orders using behavioral analysis. My job is analyzing online orders with our different programs to detect fraudsters and fraud rings, and to improve our automatic model. I love my job – our company protects customers and makes the online ordering world much safer,” says Maya.

Maya at work, making the online ordering world safer

“Thanks to the French Culture Program I understand and speak the French language, the world’s fifth most spoken language. Riskified works with merchants across the globe, and my French enables me to communicate with customers all over the world, not just in France.”

“My French enables me to communicate with customers all over the world, not just in France”

Maya holds a BA from the French Culture Program, as well as in Political Science. “It’s a great combination of degrees,” she notes. “In many of my Political Science classes, we’d learn about France, its history and politics, and my French Culture Program classes were super helpful.”

“I couldn’t be happier that I chose the French Culture Program. It is a wonderful program with lovely people and great professors, perfect for anyone who’s interested in culture and in language,” she concludes.

Become an Artist

Ram Menachem, professional musician who produces music for films and dance performances (enjoy his last album here), while also finding time to study towards his BA in the French Culture Program (he’s about to start his third year) and in the multidisciplinary program of Humanities: “If you are into art, literature, poetry and languages; if you love French cinema, chansons, philosophy, I highly recommend the French culture program,” he says.

Ram Menachem during a performance (photo: Kfir Bolotin)

“We live in a very confusing time, where we spend a lot of our time on social networks, like Tiktok, Instagram, Twitter. Our culture is very immediate, short lived and shallow. Studying French culture gave me the rare opportunity to dive deep into a piece, novel, painting, or a poem. Studying French culture and humanities made my life more meaningful, less shallow.”

“Studying French culture gave me a rare opportunity these days – namely, to dive deep into a piece, novel, painting, or a poem.”

Ram chose the Program mainly because of his love for culture. “The program,” he says, “offers a wide spectrum of it, including history of arts, literature, philosophy, language, and even music. I also find French culture fascinating where ‘liberal arts’ and ‘humanities’ are concerned, as many of the major fields are French or influenced by the French thought, such as Michel Foucault, Deleuze and Guattari, Jean-Paul Sartre and many more. I’d definitely choose the Program all over again, if I were to choose today.”

Find Out if It’s for You

The high employment rate among the French Cultural Program’s graduates, may be partly a result of its close cooperation with renowned French Universities, Israel’s Ministry of Education (it provides a significant part of the Ministry’s French teaching staff) and with non-profit organization Gvahim (which traditionally provides new immigrants and returning residents network, tools, knowledge, and support to find employment or establish their own businesses in Israel).

Jonathan Sitbon, who teaches at the Program and is also a writing expert at Israeli hi-tech company, Wix, adds: “Employment opportunities are plenty for our graduates. Hi-Tech companies, for instance, are in need of qualified workers with background in the humanities.”

“In fact, whenever I was looking to recruit someone for my own team, I’d always first pay close attention to the candidates’ broad and general skills – their curiosity, creativity, intellectual rigor, and their ability to structure thoughts through words. A great way to acquire these skills, is by diving into books and exploring the minds of great thinkers,” he concludes.

Sounds interesting? Get more details here.

Why do Corals Glow?

Written by AUFTAU on 2 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

For centuries, nature lovers and scientists have been fascinated by the fact that creatures in the sea are able to glow. The phenomenon is very common in reef-building corals, but its biological role has been the subject of constant debate. Numerous hypotheses have been tested over the years. Some suggested that this phenomenon protect against radiation. Or perhaps it contributed to the optimization of the photosynthesis? Maybe the glowing property helped protect the coral against herbivores or to attract symbiotic algae to the corals?

A new Tel Aviv University study, in collaboration with the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, and the Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat, has proven for the first time that the magical phenomenon – whereby corals in deep reefs display glowing colors (fluorescence) – is intended to serve as a mechanism for attracting prey.

The study was led by Dr. Or Ben-Zvi, in collaboration with Yoav Lindemann and Dr. Gal Eyal, under the supervision of Prof. Yossi Loya from the School of Zoology and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at Tel Aviv University.

Chasing the Glow

The researchers first sought to determine whether plankton (small organisms that drift in the sea along with the current) are attracted to fluorescence, both in the laboratory and at sea. Then, in the lab, the researchers quantified the predatory capabilities of mesophotic corals (corals that live between the shallow coral reef area and the deep, completely dark zone of the ocean), which exhibit different fluorescent appearances.

To test the planktons’ potential attraction to fluorescence, the researchers used, among other things, the crustacean Artemia salina, which is used in many experiments as well as for food for corals. The researchers noted that when the crustaceans were given a choice between a green or orange, fluorescent target versus a clear ‘control’ target, they showed a significant preference for the fluorescent target.

Moreover, when the crustaceans were given a choice between two clear targets, its choices were observed to be randomly distributed in the experimental setup. In all of the laboratory experiments, the crustaceans vastly exhibited a preferred attraction toward a fluorescent signal. Similar results were presented when using a native crustacean from the Red Sea. However, unlike the crustaceans, fish that are not considered coral prey did not exhibit these trends, and rather avoided the fluorescent targets.

Fluorescent Traps

The second phase of the study was carried out about 40 meters deep in the sea, where the fluorescent traps (both green and orange) attracted twice as many plankton as the clear trap.

“We conducted an experiment in the depths of the sea to examine the possible attraction of diverse and natural collections of plankton to fluorescence, under the natural currents and light conditions that exist in deep water,” says Dr. Or Ben-Zvi. “Since fluorescence is ‘activated’ principally by blue light (the light of the depths of the sea), at these depths the fluorescence is naturally illuminated, and the data that emerged from the experiment were unequivocal, similar to the laboratory experiment.”

“This phenomenon may play a greater role in marine ecosystems than previously thought.”

The “Light Trap Hypothesis”

In the last part of the study, the researchers examined the predation rates of mesophotic corals that were collected at 45 m depth in the Gulf of Eilat. They found that corals that displayed green fluorescence enjoyed predation rates that were 25 percent higher than corals exhibiting yellow fluorescence.

Prof. Loya: “Many corals display a fluorescent color pattern that highlights their mouths or tentacle tips, a fact that supports the idea that fluorescence, like bioluminescence (the production of light by a chemical reaction), acts as a mechanism to attract prey. The study proves that the glowing and colorful appearance of corals can act as a lure to attract swimming plankton to ground-dwelling predators, such as corals, and especially in habitats where corals require other energy sources in addition or as a substitute for photosynthesis (sugar production by symbiotic algae inside the coral tissue using light energy).”

Dr. Ben-Zvi concludes: “Despite the gaps in the existing knowledge regarding the visual perception of fluorescence signals by plankton, the current study presents experimental evidence for the prey-luring role of fluorescence in corals. We suggest that this hypothesis, which we term the ‘light trap hypothesis’, may also apply to other fluorescent organisms in the sea, and that this phenomenon may play a greater role in marine ecosystems than previously thought.”

CRISPR Therapeutics can Damage the Genome

Written by AUFTAU on 1 August 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

A new study from TAU identifies risks in the use of CRISPR therapeutics – an innovative, Nobel-prize-winning method that involves cleaving and editing DNA, already employed for the treatment of conditions like cancer, liver and intestinal diseases, and genetic syndromes.

Investigating the impact of this technology on T-cells (white blood cells of the immune system), the researchers detected a loss of genetic material in a significant percentage – up to 10% of the treated cells. They explain that such loss can lead to destabilization of the genome, which might cause cancer.

The study was led by Dr. Adi Barzel from the School of Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Biophysics at TAU’s George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and Dotan Center for Advanced Therapies, a collaboration between the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov) and Tel Aviv University, and by Dr. Asaf Madi and Dr. Uri Ben-David from TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Edmond J. Safra Center for Bioinformatics. The findings were published in the leading scientific journal Nature Biotechnology.

Cleavage Risk

The researchers explain that CRISPR is a groundbreaking technology for editing DNA – cleaving DNA sequences at certain locations to delete unwanted segments, or alternately repair or insert beneficial segments. Developed about a decade ago, the technology has already proved impressively effective in treating a range of diseases – cancer, liver diseases, genetic syndromes, and more.

The first approved clinical trial ever to use CRISPR, was conducted in 2020 at the University of Pennsylvania, when researchers applied the method to T-cells – white blood cells of the immune system. Taking T-cells from a donor, they expressed an engineered receptor targeting cancer cells, while using CRISPR to destroy genes coding for the original receptor – which otherwise might have caused the T-cells to attack cells in the recipient’s body.

“CRISPR therapeutics, in which DNA is cleaved intentionally as a means for treating cancer, might, in extreme scenarios, actually promote malignancies.”

In the present study, the researchers sought to examine whether the potential benefits of CRISPR therapeutics might be offset by risks resulting from the cleavage itself, assuming that broken DNA is not always able to recover.

Dr. Ben-David and his research associate Eli Reuveni explain, “The genome in our cells often breaks due to natural causes, but usually it is able to repair itself, with no harm done. Still, sometimes a certain chromosome is unable to bounce back, and large sections, or even the entire chromosome, are lost. Such chromosomal disruptions can destabilize the genome, and we often see this in cancer cells. Thus, CRISPR therapeutics, in which DNA is cleaved intentionally as a means for treating cancer, might, in extreme scenarios, actually promote malignancies.”

To examine the extent of potential damage, the researchers repeated mentioned 2020 Pennsylvania experiment, cleaving the T-cells’ genome in the same locations – chromosomes 2, 7, and 14 (of the human genome’s 23 pairs of chromosomes). Using a state-of-the-art technology called ‘single-cell RNA sequencing’ they analyzed each cell separately and measured the expression levels of each chromosome in every cell.

Significant Loss of Genetic Material

A significant loss of genetic material was detected in some of the cells. For example, when Chromosome 14 had been cleaved, about 5% of the cells showed little or no expression of this chromosome. When all chromosomes were cleaved simultaneously, the damage increased, with 9%, 10%, and 3% of the cells unable to repair the break in chromosomes 14, 7, and 2 respectively. The three chromosomes did differ, however, in the extent of the damage they sustained.

“Single-cell RNA sequencing and computational analyses enabled us to obtain very precise results,” explain Dr. Madi and his student Ella Goldschmidt, adding: “We found that the cause for the difference in damage was the exact place of the cleaving on each of the three chromosomes. Altogether, our findings indicate that over 9% of the T-cells genetically edited with the CRISPR technique had lost a significant amount of genetic material. Such loss can lead to destabilization of the genome, which might promote cancer.”

“We advance this highly effective technology, while at the same time cautioning against its potential dangers. This may seem like a contradiction, but as scientists we are quite proud of our approach, because we believe that this is the very essence of science: we don’t ‘choose sides.'”

Researchers Not ‘Choosing Sides’

Based on their findings, the researchers caution that extra care should be taken when using CRISPR therapeutics. They also propose alternative, less risky, methods, for specific medical procedures, and recommend further research into two kinds of potential solutions: reducing the production of damaged cells or identifying damaged cells and removing them before the material is administered to the patient.

Dr. Barzel and his PhD student Alessio Nahmad conclude: “Our intention in this study was to shed light on potential risks in the use of CRISPR therapeutics. We did this even though we are aware of the technology’s substantial advantages. In fact, in other studies we have developed CRISPR-based treatments, including a promising therapy for AIDS. We have even established two companies – one using CRISPR and the other deliberately avoiding this technology. In other words, we advance this highly effective technology, while at the same time cautioning against its potential dangers. This may seem like a contradiction, but as scientists we are quite proud of our approach, because we believe that this is the very essence of science: we don’t ‘choose sides.’ We examine all aspects of an issue, both positive and negative, and look for answers.”

New Perspectives on Tackling Human Trafficking

Written by AUFTAU on 28 July 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

In light of the World Day against Trafficking in Persons on July 30, we caught up with Prof. Hila Shamir to discuss her trailblazing legal research aimed at combating human trafficking in Israel and around the globe.

According to the latest estimates, over 40 million people are victims of modern slavery in which individuals perform labor or services under highly exploitative conditions. Their vulnerability to exploitation is often the result of poverty, exclusion or migratory status.

While trafficking is generally thought of as the exploitation in the sex industry, Shamir is among scholars helping to expand the understanding of the phenomenon to include severe forms of labor market exploitation in other labor sectors. For example, this includes the exploitation of workers in industries such as domestic and care work, construction, agriculture, mining, and fishing who are forced to work in inhumane conditions. Such circumstances include working for long hours, in physically unsafe work environments with little to no pay, and with limitations on their liberties and freedom of movement.

Top-Down Approach

“While it is possible to effectively combat human trafficking, to do so requires a willingness to address structural elements, such as restrictive migration regimes and harmful labor market regulation,” says Shamir.

She heads the TraffLab research group at the Buchmann Faculty of Law. Her interdisciplinary team includes students and researchers as well as lawyers from TAU’s Workers’ Rights Clinic, where she serves as the academic advisor. The Clinic supports Shamir’s research through the cases it represents in court.

Shamir won a competitive grant from the EU’s European Research Council for TraffLab’s research. She was the first legal scholar in Israel to win the ERC Starting Grant for outstanding early-career researchers. The ERC also nominated her lab as a finalist for its 2022 Public Engagement with Research Award for its activity building bridges between research and policymaking.

Prof. Hila Shamir. (Photo: Hadas Parush/Haaretz)

New Legal Tools

Shamir’s research seeks to formulate new legal tools to fight human trafficking with labor-based strategies alongside traditional approaches focused on criminal law, border control, and human rights. These strategies target the underlying economic, social and legal structures of labor markets prone to severely exploitative practices.

With her work, Shamir aims to transform the way trafficking is researched and, as a result, the way anti-trafficking policy is devised.

While this is no simple feat, she remains optimistic: “There are examples around the world showing us that this can be done if we are willing to move beyond criminalization and expand anti-trafficking toolkit towards strengthening the bargaining power and improving the rights of the most vulnerable workers.”

She explains that migrant and non-citizen workers are among those most vulnerable to labor trafficking, often due to their legal or social status and institutionalized corruption among employers.

Impacting the National Debate

In a significant project, Shamir’s team devised a comprehensive policy plan that proposes alternative recommendations to Israel’s current national plan on trafficking. Shamir recently presented the strategy suggestion to various Israeli government stakeholders and Knesset committees, and held a public roundtable about the plan with the UN Rapporteur on trafficking. The project also led her team to submit several branch-off policy papers over the past year to Israeli policymakers overseeing foreign workers’ rights and related topics.

Going forward, Shamir is pushing full force ahead with her research as well as public and policy engagement on trafficking. This includes several recent and impending publications based on her research on Israel, modern slavery in global value chains, and bilateral labor agreements, which are among the types of structural frameworks that affect the recruitment practices and labor conditions that can lead to trafficking.

Historic Designation for TAU’s Cymbalista Synagogue & Jewish Heritage Center

Written by AUFTAU on 28 July 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

The Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center at Tel Aviv University was designated as a protected “Heritage Site” by one of Israel’s top conservation authorities, TAU announced this week.

Completed in 1998, the building is currently the most-modern from around the country to hold the status from the Council for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in Israel. The designation of this status signifies the building’s unique qualities, both in its architectural and social aspects. The designation ensures the physical preservation of the Cymbalista Synagogue as a building of historic significance.

The Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center is located at the heart of the campus. With its broad rectangular base rising into two spiraling towers emblematic of a Torah scroll, the impressive building is a landmark work of architecture on campus and in Israel. It functions as a synagogue. The Center also serves as an academic and cultural meeting ground and includes a study room, a library, an auditorium, and a museum. Those affiliated with TAU can use the synagogue as a venue for weddings and bar mitzvahs.

In the Spirit of Respect

Swiss real estate developer, philanthropist, and TAU Honorary Doctor and Governor Norbert Cymbalista and his wife Paulette commissioned the building. It was devised to house a synagogue and bridge the gaps between religious and secular segments of Israeli society—and between the different denominations of Judaism: Orthodox, Conservative and Reform—in an academic environment.

“I am thrilled about the new designation, which reaffirms my decision to create a space in the spirit of respect for tradition, but also in the realization that dialogue and acceptance of different viewpoints are essential for Israel’s development as a democratic society,” says Cymbalista.

Cymbalista explains that the building’s initial construction plans were solely for a synagogue. However, the assassination of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin by an Israeli Jew reinforced Cymbalista’s fear that the most dangerous challenge facing Israel was the rift between the religious and secular segments of the population, which he believed could tear the country apart.

Therefore, he identified the opportunity to do more and create a comprehensive center, where those two realities of Israel life could meet and engage in dialogue within an academic environment. As such, the building’s design was expanded to nearly double the original blueprint to include an auditorium, beit midrash (study facility for Jewish scripture), and Judaica museum—the first of its kind in the Tel Aviv area.

“I hope that the Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center will continue to serve as a focal point of activity and that I will see its impact on further strengthening ties in my lifetime,” adds Cymbalista.

Symbol of Unity, Community & Pluralism

“Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center is situated at the heart of campus and is a symbol and an example of unity and community,” says TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat. “The Center reflects the liberal and pluralistic nature of Tel Aviv University. I would like to express my gratitude to Norbert Cymbalista, a loyal friend of the University and the State of Israel, for his significant contribution to promoting these important values on campus.”

Renowned Swiss architect Mario Botta designed the building. It contains materials and furnishings from around the world, including the Torah ark made of Pakistani onyx stone, golden-hued stone interior walls from Tuscany, black granite flooring from Zimbabwe, a red brick stone exterior from the Italian Dolomites, and a light wood ceiling from Switzerland.

Dr. Yair Lipshitz, Head of the Cymbalista Jewish Heritage Center at TAU: “The new designation is an immense honor for the Center, and an exciting recognition of its architectural and cultural importance. In many ways, the building is a profound response to the question of what it means to foster Jewish culture at the heart of Tel Aviv University.”

“Its multipurpose functionality offers a complex, dynamic and unique interplay between the various facets of being Jewish in Israel today,” he adds. “The preservation of such a building as a heritage landmark ensures the endurance of the vision that is set in its stones – a vision for a rich, pluralistic, multi-voiced Israeli culture.”

Tel Aviv University Researchers Develop Long Covid Treatment

Written by AUFTAU on 24 July 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

A groundbreaking new study from Tel Aviv University, the first of its kind in the world, found a promising treatment for long-term COVID-19 symptoms, based on advanced hyperbaric (high-pressure oxygen) therapy (HBOT).

Long COVID, which affects up to 30% of patients infected by the COVID-19 virus, is characterized by a range of debilitating cognitive symptoms such as inability to concentrate, brain fog, forgetfulness and difficulty recalling words or thoughts – persisting for more than three months, and sometimes up to two years. To date, no effective therapy has been suggested, leaving many millions of sufferers around the world with no remedy.

The researchers: “Our study is the first randomized controlled trial to demonstrate a real solution for long COVID. Patients exposed to an intensive protocol of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy treatments showed significant improvement compared to the control group. For millions suffering from long-term COVID-19 symptoms, the study provides new hope for recovery.”

Long Covid – Detrimental to Quality of Life

The study was conducted by the Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Research at Tel Aviv University and the Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh). It was led by Prof. Shai Efrati, Director of the Sagol Center and a faculty member at TAU’s Sackler School of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience, and by Dr. Shani-Itskovich Zilberman from the Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and TAU’s Sackler School of Medicine. Other chief contributors were Dr. Merav Catalogna, lead data scientist from the Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh), and Dr. Amir Hadanny from the Sagol Center and TAU’s Sackler School of Medicine. The paper was published in Scientific Reports.

Prof. Efrati explains: “Today, we understand that in some patients, the COVID-19 virus penetrates the brain through the cribriform plate, the part of the skull located just above our nose, and triggers chronic brain injury – mainly in brain regions in the frontal lobe, responsible for cognitive function, mental status and pain interpretation. Consequently, affected patients experience a long-term cognitive decline, with symptoms such as brain fog, loss of concentration and mental fatigue. In addition, since the frontal lobe is damaged, patients may suffer from mood disturbance, depression, and anxiety.”

According to Efrati, these clinical symptoms, identified in patients all over the world, were corroborated by the World Health Organization in an official definition of so-called ‘long COVID’ issued in October 2021, including cognitive dysfunction as one of the common symptoms. A recent study from the Universities of Cambridge and Exeter reported that 78% of long-term COVID-19 patients experienced difficulties with concentration, 69% reported brain fog, and 68% reported forgetfulness. “Thus, long-term COVID-19 effects can be very detrimental to the sufferer’s quality of life,” continues Efrati, “and no effective treatment has yet been found.”

Prof. Shai Efrati

HBOT – Proven Effective Against other Brain Injuries

“In our study, we harnessed Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, already proven effective in the treatment of other forms of brain injury such as stroke, trauma, age-related cognitive decline and treatment-resistant PTSD, to the global effort to find a solution for long COVID-19,” explains Efrati.

The study, designed as a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, included 73 patients with reported post-COVID-19 cognitive symptoms such as inability to concentrate, brain fog, forgetfulness and difficulty recalling words or thoughts, persisting for more than three months following an RT-PCR test confirming COVID-19 infection.

Participants were divided into two groups: 37 patients received HBOT treatment, while 36 patients served as a sham-controlled group, receiving placebo treatment. Both patients and investigators were unaware of their designated treatment protocol. The unique protocol consisted of 40 daily HBOT sessions, five sessions per week within a two-month period, in which patients entered a multi-place HBOT chamber and breathed 100% oxygen by mask at 2 atmospheres absolute (ATA) for 90 minutes with oxygen fluctuations. The control group received placebo treatment, breathing normal air. In addition, all participants underwent a computerized cognitive test, as well as advanced high-resolution brain imaging (profusion MRI and DTI) at two points in time – when entering the trial and after its completion.

Improved cerebral blood flow by HBOT in patient suffering from post-COVID symptoms (photo: Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine)

Repairing through Regeneration

The results were highly encouraging: patients treated with HBOT showed significant improvement, while in the control group long COVID symptoms remained largely unchanged.

In HBOT-treated patients, the greatest improvements were exhibited in the global cognitive function, attention, and executive functions (the capacity to plan, organize, initiate, self-monitor and control one’s responses to achieve a goal). Other benefits included better information processing speed, improved psychiatric symptoms, more mental energy, better sleep quality, and less body pain.

All clinical findings were correlated with the participants’ brain images, indicating significant change in the parts of the brain related to each function, which had been visibly damaged by the COVID-19 virus.

Dr. Shani-Itskovich Zilberman: “We know that HBOT repairs brain damage through a process of regeneration – generating new neurons and blood vessels. We believe that the beneficial effects of the unique treatment protocol in this study can be attributed to renewed neuroplasticity and increased brain perfusion in regions associated with cognitive and emotional roles.”

Prof. Efrati: “For the first time, our study proposes an effective treatment for the debilitating long COVID syndrome, repairing brain injury with an intensive protocol of HBOT. Moreover, the study reveals the very real biological damage to brain tissues induced by the COVID-19 virus, and how repairing this damage reduces symptoms and can eventually lead to recovery.”

“From a broader perspective, these findings can also suggest that other neurological and psychiatric syndromes might be triggered by biological agents such as viruses, opening new possibilities for future treatments.”

Note: For patients with long COVID and other neurological disorders, reliable high-quality HBOT is now available at Aviv Clinics in Florida and Dubai, international arms of the Sagol Center at Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh) in Israel – administering the same strict protocols, with additional cognitive, physical and nutrition support provided to patients.

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