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 18, 2023... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—December 19, 2023 — For decades, it has been known that people with diabetes are at a substantially increased risk of developing severe lung disease if they become infected with viruses such as influenza, as well as with bacteria or fungi. When the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, this mysterious phenomenon took on even greater importance: It became clear that people with diabetes were at significantly higher risk of severe – or even fatal – lung disease after becoming seriously ill from the virus. In fact, 35% of people with COVID-19 who died during the pandemic had diabetes, but no one understood why.
Jan 18, 2024... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—January 18, 2024—Winning a battle requires precise intelligence and unwavering resolve. But when it comes to the battle against cancer, the immune system’s soldiers – called T cells – quickly become exhausted, and intelligence-providing dendritic cells are scarce. This is one of the reasons why the great promise of immunotherapy – a new generation of treatments that harness the body’s own immune system to fight cancer – has not been fully realized.
https://weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/toward-a-treatment-for-huntington-s-disease/
Feb 27, 2024...
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—February 27, 2024—The human brain is a well-guarded control center. Its system of blood vessels is surrounded by a densely packed cellular barrier that prevents most substances from getting in or out. This fortified architecture protects the brain, but it can also stop it from getting help when needed – as in the case of a neurodegenerative disease.
In a new study published in EMBO Molecular Medicine, Prof. Rivka Dikstein of the Weizmann Institute of Science and her team identified two small molecules that manage to penetrate the blood-brain barrier and reduce the levels of a defective protein that causes Huntington’s disease, an incurable neurodegenerative disorder. The new drugs not only slowed the progress of the disease in mouse models but even reversed some of its symptoms.
Mar 26, 2024...
Jerusalem, March 26, 2024 – The Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities and The New York Academy of Sciences announced today the Laureates of the 2024 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel. This year’s Laureates, who will each receive $100,000, are:
Schraga Schwartz, PhD (Life Sciences) – Weizmann Institute of Science – Recognized for developing groundbreaking analytical methods to locate and quantify chemical changes in RNA. Professor Schwartz’s breakthroughs in understanding RNA modifications hold promise for treating genetic diseases and expanding the role of RNA editing beyond vaccine development.