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.
Jul 20, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—July 20, 2020—Scientists searching for better diagnostic tests, drugs, or vaccines against a virus must begin by deciphering the structure of that virus. And when the virus in question is highly pathogenic, such research can be quite dangerous. Prof. Roy Bar-Ziv of the Weizmann Institute’s Department of Materials and Interfaces; staff scientist Dr. Shirley Shulman Daube; Dr. Ohad Vonshak, a former research student in the Bar-Ziv lab; and current research student Yiftach Divon have an original solution to this obstacle. They demonstrated the production of viral parts within artificial cells.
May 31, 2022... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—May 31, 2022—Ketamine, a well-known anesthetic used in smaller doses as a party drug, was hailed as a “new hope for depression” in a Time magazine cover story in 2017. Two years later, the arrival of the first ketamine-based antidepressant – the nasal spray esketamine, made by Johnson & Johnson – was applauded as the most exciting development in the treatment of mood disorders in decades. Yet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration still limits the spray’s use. It is mainly given to depressed patients who have not been helped by other therapies – in part, because the new drug’s mechanism of action is insufficiently understood, leading to concerns over its safety.
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