Precision Personalized Medicine

Four research groups at Technion have been awarded grants from the Israel Science Foundation for personalized precision medicine research

The studies include improving cancer treatments and healing wounds in diabetics.

Four Technion research groups have been awarded ISF grants for research into personalized precision medicine. This is the second round of grants given by the Israel Science Foundation (ISF). In this round of the program, 16 research grants totaling approximately NIS 60 million were awarded to research groups from universities in Israel. The selected research projects are expected to lead to major breakthroughs in the field, increasing understanding of disease, and promoting new therapeutic approaches.

The four Technion projects are:

• Defining sensitivity and overcoming resistance to PARP inhibition in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma using combined genomics and metabolomics tools. Prof. Eyal Gottlieb, and Prof. Keren Yizhak of the Technion Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, and their colleagues at Sheba Medical Center (Oncology Institute).

• Overcoming Resistance to CAR-T cell Therapy due to Antigen Loss or Modulation by New Chimeric Receptors Targeting Intracellular-derived HLA Peptidome. Prof. Yoram Reiter, Technion Faculty of Biology, Prof. Myriam Ben-Arush, and Dr. Adi Shapira, Rambam Health Care Campus (Pediatric Hemato-oncology).

• Understanding the relation of cellular and immunosenescence in aging and its relevance to the dynamics and clinical outcomes of severe infections. The study is conducted in cooperation with the Maccabi Health Data Science Institute. Prof. Shai Shen-Orr, Technion Faculty of Medicine, Prof. Valery Krizhanovsky, Weizmann Institute of Science (Molecular Cell Biology), and Prof. Mical Paul, Rambam Health Care Campus (Institute of Infectious Diseases)

• A personalized 3D oxygen-sensing skin graft for the diagnosis and treatment of chronic wounds in patients with diabetes. Prof. Aharon Blank, Technion Faculty of Chemistry, Prof. Mogher Khamaisi, Rambam Health Care Campus (Internal Medicine D and Endocrinology), Prof. Marcelle Machluf, Technion Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering and Prof. Yaron Fuchs, Technion Faculty of Biology.

The 16 winning research proposals in the current round were selected from 75 submitted proposals on a wide range of topics related to human biology as it applies to medicine. This program enables further expansion and deepening of personalized medicine in Israel. The winning bids were selected in a competitive process, based on scientific excellence, by an international judging committee chaired by the Nobel laureate for Chemistry, Professor Roger Kornberg of Stanford University. 

Research in the field of Precision Medicine is based on broad interdisciplinary collaborations that integrate scientific and medical knowledge, theory, in-depth analysis of medical big data, and extensive experimental work. The research program is based on a pooling of resources, which is part of the Planning and Budgeting Committee of the Council for Higher Education, the Ministry of Health, Israel’s digital project of the Ministry of Social Equality, the Yad Hanadiv and the Kellerman Family Foundation (Boston). The program is run and operated by the National Science Foundation (ISF).

Professor Yuval Dor, Head of ISF’s Life Sciences and Medicine division: “In IPMP’s second program cycle, we have witnessed a wealth of outstanding research programs that reflect the scientific depth and spirit of collaboration among researchers and physicians in Israel, and among universities, hospitals, and health funds. We were pleased to have been able to conduct the competitive evaluation process without delay, despite disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The winning proposals are from a range of universities and medical institutions, address fundamental questions in human health, and are expected to generate important scientific insights and medical applications.”

Professor Yaffa Zilbershats, Chair of the Council for Higher Education’s Planning and Budgeting Committee: “The IPMP program is a source of pride and satisfaction. By the end of the first cycle, it emerged that the program had exceeded all expectations. The second cycle reinforces this understanding. I am excited to see the content of the winning projects, their scientific quality, and the collaborations between scientists from academia and physicians and researchers from health organizations. There is no doubt that the program will make a huge contribution to advancing research and medicine in Israel and around the world. I thank the members of the Israel Science Foundation (ISF), who rose up to the challenge of evaluating the proposals within the timetables, despite the coronavirus outbreak.”

Shai-Lee Spigelman, CEO, Digital Israel, Ministry of Social Equality: “The IPMP program is a significant part of the Digital Health initiative as an engine of growth, positioning Israel at the forefront of the digital health revolution. It demonstrates the tremendous value of the medical information generated in Israel. The outstanding research studies that won the second cycle of the program will expand our understanding of a variety of diseases and help prevent and treat them. Equally important, they will strengthen the excellent existing collaboration between Israel’s academia and health system. This collaboration underpins Israel’s excellence in health and is one of the reasons for Israel’s success in battling the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic.”

Last year, grants were also awarded to Technion scholars: Prof. Roy Kishony of the Faculty of Biology (Development of customized antibiotic treatment for urinary tract infections); Prof. Tomer Shlomi of the Faculty of Biology (Early diagnosis of cancer in the population; Prof. Amit Mellar of the Faculty of Medicine (Prediction of retinal disease); and Prof. Yael Mandel-Gutfreund of the Biology Faculty (Prenatal diagnosis of birth defects).