2022 - Technion - Israel Institute of Technology

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The coronavirus pandemic, also known by its more precise name COVID-19, started in late 2019 and spread rapidly around the world. Although the original form of the novel coronavirus – SARS-CoV-2 – was armed with an effective system against mutations, it was not immune to them. Indeed, the virus has since “split” into strains according to differing evolutionary variables in different populations. The World Health Organization (WHO) decided not to give complicated names to each variant and has instead named the variants after letters of the Greek alphabet: Alpha for the British variant, Beta for the South African, Gamma for the Brazilian, Delta for the Indian, and so on.

The appearance of new variants is the result of random mutations and natural selection. Most mutations do not significantly alter the virus’s ability to survive and infect, but some give it a significant advantage to thrive and spread in the community. In the context of the current pandemic, these mutations occur in the spike protein – the arrowhead of the virus – which allows it to penetrate the cells in our body.

Many research groups are currently studying the mechanism for the emergence of new coronavirus variants, through analyzing their evolution and specifically the evolution of the spike protein. These studies have allowed for the unprecedented development of dedicated and effective mRNA vaccines that have largely curbed the pandemic. Although they have not completely defeated it, they have succeeded – mainly in populations with high vaccination rates – in reducing its damage to human life, the burden on health systems, and disruption to daily routine.

The commonality between most of these studies is that they focus on the dynamics of the formation of variants in the population and on the more “active” variants in terms of infection in the population. A study carried out at the Technion and published in PLOS Pathogens sheds light on a lesser-studied area: new variants at the individual level, or, in other words, what happens in the body of the patient during their illness. The study was led by Assistant Professor Yotam Bar-On and doctoral student Dina Khateeb, both from the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine.

Prof. Yotam Bar-On (left) and Dina Khateeb

The study is the culmination of a year and a half of work and is based on an experimental platform that Prof. Bar-On began developing during his postdoctoral fellowship. The technology, initially developed as part of an HIV study, provided sequencing on an individual molecule level, mapping the genome of the individual virus, and comparing different variants that developed in the patient’s respiratory system. Furthermore, it can detect very low doses of virus found in tissue cells that do not show up with simpler methods.

During the study, the researchers discovered various mutations not included in existing databases and even a new, previously unknown variant. The researchers also examined the efficacy of existing vaccines against these variants and found that the efficacy varies depending on the different types of mutations in the spike protein.

Prof. Yotam Bar-On

Good news: the mutations that develop in the patient’s body produce, as a rule, variants with a relatively low adhesion capacity. In other words, these variants may not be transmittable from person to person. The scientists emphasise that this hypothesis still requires further research, but these findings hold true for the 10 variants examined to date in the study.

The researchers identified a specific mutation in s2 – one of the spike proteins, which impairs the effectiveness of antibodies battling the virus. “This identification is an important factor in understanding the adaptation of the virus to its host’s body,” explains Prof. Bar-On. “We appreciate that our findings may lead to the detection of weaknesses in the virus – mechanisms that weaken its ability to infect – and to develop new measures to curb infection.”

The findings show that analysis of the evolution of the virus at an individual level contributes to a better understanding of its development and of possible ways to combat it using vaccines and drugs. The researchers, who have focused on mutations related to the Alpha variant, estimate that a similar analysis of the Delta variant – currently the most dangerous strain – may increase the toolbox available to science and medicine in the fight against the pandemic.

Dina Khateeb

Assistant Professor Yotam Bar-On completed his PhD at the Hebrew University and his postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University. He is head of a laboratory in the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion, which deals with the interaction between viruses and the host organism in various diseases, including Coronavirus and HIV.

Dina Khateeb holds a B.Sc. in Medical Life Sciences from Hadassah College and an M.Sc. in Biomedical Sciences from the Hebrew University. She joined the Bar-On lab at the Technion in April 2020, shortly after the outbreak of the pandemic and immediately began studying the evolution of the coronavirus. The current study was based on samples from that period – using some of the first samples taken from coronavirus patients in Israel.

The study was supported by the National Science Foundation in collaboration with the Technion Genomic Center (TGC) headed by Dr. Tal Katz-Ezov, the National Center for Influenza and Respiratory Viruses at Sheba Hospital headed by Dr. Michal Mendelboim and the MIDGAM team – Israeli National Biobank for Research – at Rambam Medical Center.

Click here for the paper in PLOS Pathogens

Genetic counseling is a complex medical process that includes an explanation of genetic principles and hereditary diseases, risk calculations, and relevant tests. The knowledge revolution in the field of medical genetics makes these conversations increasingly challenging, both for consultants and patients, who need to digest new, complex, and medically complicated information, and translate it into more concrete steps and decisions with deep personal implications for individuals and families. Informed decisions are based on available information, as well as on a wide range of personal factors, including cultural, moral, and religious perspectives.

Genetic counseling is an important service whose availability becomes more and more limited due to a shortage in professionals, the increasing length of time needed for each session, and restricted access to a genetic counseling service in certain geographic areas. These challenges are even more significant in a multicultural population with diverse educational levels, and a poor understanding of genetics. The recent epidemic has added another layer of difficulties in accessing the service.

Olfat Abuleil-Zoubi and Chen Gafni-Amsalem, both studying for a Ph.D. in the Technion’s Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and working together at the HaEmek Medical Center’s Genetic Institute, have developed an approach to make it easier for consultants and patients to streamline the process. They examined whether the use of digital tools, such as professional animations they developed on selected topics, affect the outcome of genetic counseling. They compared the effect of these animations to counseling without prior intervention, as is the current practice, as well as to the effect of reading an information booklet on the subject prior to counseling, as a more “traditional” educational tool.

Olfat Abuleil-Zoubi

Abuleil-Zoubi and Gafni-Amsalem were supervised by the director of the Institute, Clinical Professor Stavit Shalev from the Faculty of Medicine, and Professor Ayelet Baram-Tsabari from the Faculty of Education in Science and Technology. According to Prof. Shalev, “Genetic testing is a process that affects not only those being tested but also their family members and sometimes the wider community as well. The process can generate many concerns, so the access to information and full understanding of the whole medical picture, is very important. These are topics that are very diverse and personal, such as deciding whether to marry a partner, whether to endanger a pregnancy with an invasive test, or whether to terminate a pregnancy due to diagnosis of a particular genetic condition. They’re decisions that have far-reaching implications. Effective communication between service providers and recipients is critical to a successful process, at the end of which patients will make an informed personal decision, appropriate for them, based on the knowledge and information they acquired during the consultation.”

Prof. Stavit Shalev

The two students selected ten relevant topics within genetic counseling and made an animated video for each one containing information and guidance on the specific content. Altogether they produced 20 videos – each topic in both Hebrew and Arabic. “The need for early preparation for counseling has been made clear to us by the people who come to the Genetics Institute for advice,” said Zoabi. “We all know that knowledge is power, and the knowledge relevant to the important decisions related to pregnancy and birth allows people to make more informed decisions in line with their worldview. Furthermore, it is now clear to us that knowledge may help alleviate the concerns associated with the process.”

The trial involved 1,380 patients, some of whom came in for counseling due to abnormal findings during pregnancy and some on other issues, such as genetic screening tests, advanced age of the mother, conditions of family members, and fertility defects. Gafni-Amsalem explained that “although reading explanatory pamphlets has been found to be effective, the animations have been found to be much more effective, especially among less educated populations with poor understanding on genetics.”

“We expect people to make informed decisions about their health,” said Prof. Baram-Tsabari, “but that moment of receiving surprising news in the genetic counselor’s office is probably not the best time to learn the basic concepts of genetics. Making the relevant science accessible, and only the relevant science, in a clear and non-threatening way at a time convenient for the patient to digest, makes it easier for them to make an informed decision.”

Prof. Ayelet Baram-Tsabari

Gafni- Amsalem agreed. “The importance of accessing information digitally is particularly relevant today, after a long pandemic that has made it difficult to hold in-person consultations,” she said. “Using animation as a preparatory stage for genetic counseling has many advantages such as being consistent, accurate and reliable, and can be consumed at a time, place – and pace – comfortable to the user, to ensure optimal user experience. Today, digital tools are part of our daily personal and social behavior and digesting the material on a phone prior to a hospital appointment is very normal for our patients.”

Chen Gafni-Amsalem

“In the experiment, we showed the patients the videos while they were with us at the Institute of Genetics, but following its success, we began to routinely send the digital files to patients’ phones before genetic counseling,” Prof. Stavit said. “Considering the success of the intervention, we plan to roll-out this approach to all patients as part of the general health service in Israel.”

The videos (in Hebrew) can be viewed here.

On January 3, 2022, the Technion held an award ceremony for prizes, research grants and scholarships as part of a project, sponsored by SolarEdge, in memory of the late Guy Sella. A Technion graduate, Guy Sella founded SolarEdge in 2006 together with Lior Handelsman, Meir Adest, Yoav Galin and Amir Fishelov. The company they founded became a world leader in smart energy technology, and particularly for solar-power generation.

Guy Sella passed away in August 2019. The project set up in his memory includes the establishment of PEARL (Power Electronics and Renewable Energy Lab) in the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Technion; research prizes, research grants, and graduate student scholarships in the field of energy; a biennial energy hackathon for students; and tours for high-school students to the Grand Technion Energy Program (GTEP).

Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan

The award ceremony was attended by Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan, SolarEdge CEO Zvi Lando, Guy’s widow, Barbara Sella, and representatives from the Grand Technion Energy Program. “I’m sorry that I did not get to know Guy personally,” said the Technion president “I don’t know what impact the Technion had on him, but he certainly left an impact on so many others. The partnership with SolarEdge is a pillar in the strategy that the Technion has been leading in recent years – a true partnership between industry and academia and the removal of boundaries between basic and applied research. Over the next decade, these boundaries will blur even further, and we will realize new breakthroughs and achieve new goals together.”

“Guy wanted to make the world a better place,” SolarEdge’s CEO said. “Our mission is to turn Israel into a sustainable energy powerhouse, and with cooperation between academia and industry, we will continue to push the limits and achieve research goals.”

The ceremony was hosted by the director of the Grand Technion Energy Program, Prof. Yoed Tsur from the Wolfson Faculty of Chemical Engineering, who said: “Since its establishment in 2007, the Grand Technion Energy Program has been active in creating research infrastructure and promoting research in this field. GTEP-led activities have generated significant scientific discoveries and major national initiatives and have forged strong industrial and academic collaborations within Israel and with prominent international institutes. We and SolarEdge share a common goal; each of us aspires to be part of the global energy revolution and to provide the necessary solutions to leave a slightly better world for future generations.”

The Guy Sella Research Prize was won by two members of the Grand Technion Energy Program: Prof. Gideon Grader from the Wolfson Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Prof. Avner Rothschild from the Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering. They received the award for developing innovative technology to produce hydrogen – the technological basis upon which the start-up company H2Pro was established.

Prof. Avner Rothschild

The research grant was awarded to Prof. Yair Ein-Eli from the Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, and Dr. Nadav Amdursky from the Shulich Faculty of Chemistry.

Dr. Nadav Amdursky

The Guy Sella Scholarships were awarded to Shalom David Aksman Kleingesinds from the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Amir Marzouq from the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Aviad Navon from the Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Natalie Levyfrom the Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, and Daniel Gino from the Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning.

From right to left: Prof. Yoed Tsur, student Aviad Navon, Barbara Sella and Zvi Lando

From right to left: Prof. Yoed Tsur, student Amir Marzouq, Barbara Sella and Zvi Lando

The grants are being awarded to the following faculty members:

Dr. Ayala Shiber of the Faculty of Biology is exploring how RNA molecules in the cell direct proteins to fold to their native, functional state and avoid misfolding. She was awarded the ERC grant for her research on cellular mechanisms that protect proteins during synthesis and prevent neurodegeneration and aging.

Dr. Shay Moran of the Faculty of Mathematics is researching mathematical problems that arise in computer science, with a focus on combinatorial-geometric problems related to machine learning. He received the ERC grant to conduct research on modern challenges in the theory of generalization.

Dr. Aviv Tamar of the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering is developing methods to teach robots to autonomously carry out tasks. He received the grant to research deep Bayesian reinforcement learning.

Dr. Ron Rothblum of the Henry and Marilyn Taub Faculty of Computer Science specializes in theoretical computer science, especially in the context of cryptography and complexity theory. He was awarded the grant to develop fast proofs for verifying computations.

“This is an impressive achievement by any measure, especially since the number of applications rose by 25% in 2021,” said Prof. Koby Rubinstein, Executive Vice President for Research at the Technion. “Three of the winning research projects are connected to artificial intelligence (AI), a fact that matches the Technion’s extensive and in-depth activities in this field. The Technion’s efforts to advance the field of AI in Israel have positioned it in first place in this area in Europe, and today the Technion is ranked at the top of European AI research and development.”

The European Research Council was founded in 2007 to support all fields of research and to encourage the best researchers from anywhere in the world. ERC grants are awarded in different categories, one of which is the ERC Starting Grant – a grant intended for young faculty members. Each winning project receives at least 1.5 million euros in support, to be used for advancing the project during a five-year budgetary period.

PFAS are a family of problematic pollutants also known as “forever chemicals” because of their chemical stability and environmental persistence. These substances can be found in a large range of products, including Teflon pan coating, fire-fighting foam, flame retardants, and water repellent additives. They reach the groundwater in various ways, including agricultural irrigation using treated wastewater and fire-fighting substances seeping into the soil. As a result of their chemical stability, they remain intact in the ground for a long time, leading to extensive contamination of drinking sources, which in turn significantly increases human exposure.

International studies have demonstrated the many health risks posed by exposure to PFAS, including cancer, heart and liver disease, fertility problems, birth defects, and damage to the immune system. Consequently, Israel has begun monitoring these substances. In fact, last summer the extraction of potable water in the Krayiot region was stopped following the discovery of a high concentration of PFAS.

Dr. Adi Radian

Today, removing these substances from drinking water is accomplished through relatively simple and inexpensive adsorption techniques. However, these methods are not sufficiently efficient, and, most importantly, they only transfer the pollutants from the water to the adsorbent material – which requires additional purification steps to get rid of the toxic adsorbed substances. Furthermore, these methods are not selective: they can also remove substances that are essential for people’s health.

There are two new and promising solutions: using oxidation processes and using targeted polymers that efficiently adsorb the polluting substances. Yet, until now these technologies have not exhibited satisfactory results.

The new research examined the possibility of combining these two methods – separating the pollutants with special polymers, and then using advanced oxidation processes to eliminate them. The findings indicate that proper planning leads to high efficiency under a wide range of acidity (pH) and salinity. The method depicted in the article shows the removal of seven types of PFAS – even when all of them are found in the same unit of fluid – at a level of efficiency that approaches 90%, and it does so within a few minutes.

Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Samapti Kundu

The system described in the article is based on natural materials that are both safe and inexpensive. The researchers used ubiquitous soil minerals – iron oxides and clays, together with cyclodextrin polymers. The clay-iron-polymer composites act as accelerators that confine the PFAS on the surface and then accelerate the oxidation process that destroys the pollutants into non-toxic substances (fluoride ions, water, and carbon dioxide). This combination efficiently removes the PFAS and does not release unwanted substances in water used for drinking.

In their article, the researchers show that this system makes it unnecessary to carry out complementary processes such as heating, UV radiation, and using sound waves, which make the task more complicated and more expensive.

Depiction of how the system works: 1. The pollutants are separated from the water and confined to the surface of the clay-polymer composite; 2. The pollutants are oxidized to create non-toxic substances (water, CO2, and fluoride ions); 3. The system is regenerated, and at the end of the oxidation process, a new cycle of removal and degradation can begin.

The research was conducted in the Soil Chemistry Laboratory in the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The researchers wish to thank the Lady Davis Foundation for Samapti Kundu’s postdoctoral research grant.

Click here for the paper in Chemical Engineering Journal.

Researchers from Maccabi KSM Research and Innovation Center, in collaboration with researchers from the Technion, found that the effect of the COVID-19 booster shot on lowering the viral load is waning, similar to the second dose of the vaccine

A new study by Maccabi KSM Research and Innovation Center (Kahn-Sagol-Maccabi), headed by Dr. Tal Patalon, and the Technion, shows that the effectiveness of the coronavirus booster vaccine in lowering the viral load, is similar to the second vaccine dose – reducing the viral load within months. Previous studies have found that the viral load is most likely related to the chances of infecting others, so the lower the viral load, the lower the chances of infection.

According to Dr. Tal Patalon, Head of Maccabi Research and Innovation Center: “In light of the spread of the Omicron variant, it is highly recommended that at-risk populations follow the recommendations of the Ministry of Health. We researchers, along with healthcare policy representatives, have to continue monitoring the spread of the virus; its short- and long-term implications, and to manage this global epidemic wisely.”

“The results suggest a significant decrease in the effectiveness of the vaccine against the transmission of the virus, and this decline may be affecting the spread of the virus in the community”

According to Prof. Roy Kishony from the Technion’s Faculty of Biology: “In previous studies, we have seen that the vaccine and the booster not only reduce the chances of getting the disease but also reduce the viral load in the body of those who are infected, thus apparently reducing further infections in the population. However, during our current work, we have seen that the protection of the vaccine against a high viral load decreases within a few months after the booster, similar to the decline we saw after the second dose. These results suggest a significant decrease in the effectiveness of the vaccine against the transmission of the virus, and this decline may be affecting the spread of the virus in the community.”

Prof. Roy Kishony

This is the sixth study on coronavirus as part of collaborative work between the researchers. The study was led by Dr. Tal Patalon and Dr. Sivan Gazit from the Maccabi Research and Innovation center together with Prof. Kishony, Matan Levine-Tiefenbrun and Dr. Idan Yelin from the Technion Faculty of Biology and the Lorry I. Lokey Interdisciplinary Center for Life Sciences and Engineering.

The study was carried out on anonymized data with the approval of the IRB Committee and included over 21,000 positive tests from Maccabi members over the age of 20. The period studied was between June 28 and November 29, 2021 – five months during which Delta was the dominant strain in Israel, prior to the onset of Omicron.

The researchers note that the study has some limitations. Firstly, the study refers solely to the effect of the booster on the viral load and does not examine the efficacy in preventing the disease; that is, it does not determine if the protection against infection is similarly waning. Secondly, although viral load is a common indication of the presence of the virus, the correlation between the viral load and infection is not fully established. Thirdly, differences in public behavior may affect the timing in which people are tested, and since viral load is associated with the time after infection, such differences may skew the results of the study.

The researchers plan to continue tracking real world data and conducting followup studies in different populations.

The MindState ideation competition, which harnesses scientific and technological knowledge for improving healthcare, will take place online on January 11-12. Approximately 70 students from the Technion and Cornell Tech will participate in the ideation sprint, working in mixed groups of students from both institutions with support from medical teams and leading designers. The winners will receive monetary prizes – $5,000 for 1^st place, $3,000 for 2^nd place and $2,000 for 3^rd place.

During the event, student teams tackle challenges of developing innovative technologies that have business potential and can improve the future of medicine. In past years, the winning teams proposed unique and innovative solutions for a wide range of medical problems. Last year, the team that won 1^st place later received the top prize in the BizTEC entrepreneurship competition: https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2021/02/time-to-care/.

The annual ideation event is organized by the Technion, Cornell Tech, the MindState company and two leading hospitals, Rambam and Sourasky. The competition presents real challenges and real problems, and some of the solutions developed by the students during the ideation become actual inventions and sometimes grow into start-up companies.

Senior doctors have been extremely helpful in formulating the challenges: Prof. Lior Gepstein of the Technion Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, director of the Rambam Department of Cardiology and director of the Research Division; Dr. Yona Weissbuch, director of the National Center for Medical Innovation Studies in partnership with Rambam and the Technion; and Prof. Eli Sprecher, deputy director of Research & Development and director of the Department of Dermatology at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov).

This is the hackathon’s third year, and this year 35 students from seven different Technion faculties will participate – compared to only six students who took part in the first year, 2020.

This year, the event will focus on the connection between climate and medicine, with a special emphasis on challenges in three categories: Planet Earth, hospitals, and patients. The teams will confront a range of subjects, such as air pollution and respiratory disease, early detection of skin cancer, preparedness for natural disasters, improving hospital processes, ‘green’ hospitals, reducing the psychological impact of isolation, and dealing with fatigue of medical teams due to lack of sleep.

The competition is the conclusion of a unique class offered at the Technion by Dr. Joachim Behar, director of the Artificial Intelligence in Medicine Laboratory (AIMLab) in the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, and teaching assistant Sophie Segal. Together with Dr. Behar, the ideation sprint is led by Prof. Ron Brachman, Director of the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute; Prof. Ariel Orda, Jacobs Program head at Technion; Michael Escosia, Libby Budashev and Lucie Milanez of the Jacobs Institute; and Tamar Many and Henk van Assen, founders of MindState. According to Many, “the previous ideation sprints clarified the importance of the direct connection between the multidisciplinary students, the designers and the medical teams who cope with real problems. The enthusiasm can be seen from all sides, and I am delighted that the medical teams and the hospital management are fully committed to our initiative in such difficult times.”

The student teams are accompanied by mentors from the Rambam and Sourasky medical centers and by professional designers from the leading companies Designit, Monday, Google, Melio, Wix and Lightricks. The concluding ceremony, during which the winners will be announced, will take place in April.

The joy of a baby coming into the world is accompanied by fear for this helpless little being, completely reliant on outside help to survive. This trepidation is even greater for a baby born preterm, much more unprepared for the world that welcomes it, and needing help even to breathe. In the womb, the fetus receives oxygen from the mother, through the umbilical cord. Once born, the newborn must breathe independently. Many premature babies with underdeveloped lungs require mechanical ventilation. The more prematurely the baby is born, the longer they will need artificial breathing.

Using a 3D model of the babies’ upper airways, the research team of Prof. Josué Sznitman, of the Technion Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, discovered that due to shear forces caused by the air jet from the mechanical ventilator, cells in the airways display stress, and an inflammation process begins. Following this discovery, the researchers successfully tested the use of an anti-inflammatory drug, commonly used to help asthma patients, to prevent the damage caused by the ventilator.

Prof. Josue Sznitman (right) and Dr. Eliram Nof

Prof. Josué Sznitman (right) and Dr. Eliram Nof

Approximately one in 10 babies around the world is born prematurely. In high-income countries, most premature babies survive. But despite significant advances in the care of preterm babies and improved ventilation technologies, many suffer from lifelong disabilities of varied severity. One problem is offsetting adverse side effects of invasive mechanical ventilation, essential for maintaining the lives of preemies incapable of breathing independently. Today, the impact of ventilation on patient health and the fundamental mechanisms causing damage is still not fully understood, which presents an obstacle to developing solutions. Prof. Sznitman’s team confronts these challenges by combining expertise in physics, physiology, and biology.

Dr. Arbel Artzy-Schnirman

In a study published last year in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, Prof. Sznitman and (his then doctoral student) Dr. Eliram Nof identified an airflow phenomenon largely unnoticed in medical literature: a jet structure originating in the tube inserted into the trachea during mechanical ventilation. Using a physical (fluid dynamics based) model, they discovered regions of elevated shear stress, potentially incurring damage to the epithelial cell lining of the respiratory tract. Calculations revealed significant risks of injury from these forces, especially worrisome if occurring for lengthy periods in fragile patients such as premature babies.

In a follow-up study recently published in Bioengineering & Translational Medicine, the researchers tested their hypothesis in a new model featuring an artificial human lung epithelium. The team constructed a 3-D model of the upper respiratory tract, including the trachea and several branched airways. They cultured a layer of human lung epithelial cells in the model’s inner lumen, tracking their condition following mechanical ventilation. They observed that the cells displayed stress and released cytokines – signaling proteins that influence inflammation.

המודל התלת-ממדי המלא עם שכבת האפיתל הצבועה באדום (צבען ממברנלי לתאים).

The 3D model, with epithelial cells-stained red

Following this discovery, the group looked for means to mitigate or prevent the damage. The medication Montelukast, sold under the brand name Singulair, is commonly used in treating asthma patients. They found that topical delivery of the medication prior to starting mechanical ventilation considerably reduced cell death. It also altered the secretion of inflammation-related signaling proteins (cytokines). Repurposing an existing, fully approved drug saves the vast resources and time required for developing new medication, allowing for faster and easier adoption in other clinical uses.

“Today, we know that artificial ventilation incurs various types of trauma to the respiratory system despite being an established, life-saving procedure,” explained Prof. Sznitman. “Much of this damage has been attributed to mechanical factors such as high pressure and distention of deep (alveolar) lung tissue. In recent years, new insights into more complex processes have emerged. In the current study, we demonstrated in vitro the start of an inflammatory response at the core of morbidity in invasively ventilated infants. We linked the flow-induced shear stresses to inflammation by measuring cytokines, the messengers of the immune system, and tracking epithelial cell health.”

Damage caused by mechanical ventilation, particularly prolonged mechanical ventilation, is not just observed in premature babies. When the COVID-19 epidemic began, countries were racing to acquire ventilators. Soon, however, patients requiring prolonged respiratory support were developing inflammation and dying. Medical personnel started making every effort to postpone putting patients on ventilators, even when the patients were struggling to breathe on their own. The findings of Prof. Sznitman’s group could improve their survival chances and help patients suffering from other conditions, such as COPD, that necessitate prolonged mechanical ventilation.

Fluorescent bright-field microscopy imaging reveals a region of cell detachment localized at the first bifurcation. The epithelial cells are stained blue.

The methodology used by Prof. Sznitman’s group is of particular interest. Modeling the upper airways, they uncovered the mechanism of a deleterious effect and proposed treatment, all without necessitating animal studies. While animal testing cannot be eliminated from medical research entirely, advanced technologies permit scientists to use other means for earlier stages. Beyond reducing animal suffering, such methodologies permit scientists to obtain results faster, at a lower cost, and with reduced confounding factors, speeding up research.

This study was led by Prof. Josue Sznitman, Dr. Eliram Nof, and Dr. Arbel Artzy-Schnirman, in collaboration with clinical specialists in pediatrics and otolaryngology, including Dr. Liron Borenstein-Levin, a faculty member at the Technion’s Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and an attending physician at the Neonatology Intensive Care Unit at the Rambam Health Care Campus. The work was supported by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program.

Dr. Eliram Nof recently began his postdoctoral fellowship at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and Dr. Arbel Artzy-Schnirman has been appointed the Head of the Advanced Technology Center for Applied Medical Research at the Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa.

Particle image velocimetry (PIV)-based visualization of the air jet in the airways:

For the article in Bioengineering & Translational Medicine click here

Today, January 4th, is World Braille Day, marking Louis Braille’s birthday. Although the Braille tactile writing system was invented about 200 years ago, there have been many technological challenges in adapting it to the computerized age.

Developed in the early 1800s by Louis Braille, Braille is a series of characters, or “cells,” that are made up of raised dot patterns

A recent breakthrough published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) heralds a new generation of compact and efficient Braille monitors. The findings by researchers at the Technion and Cornell University present a “robotic Braille monitor” with a dynamic silicone surface and small Braille “bubbles” on top of it. The development is based on the flow of methane and oxygen into the silicone surface and the swelling of these “bubbles” using controlled micro-scale combustion and without any need for a pump.

The study’s authors, Prof. Amir Gat and Ph.D. student Ofek Peretz from the Technion Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, are engaged in broader research of soft robotics. This area draws great inspiration from biological tissue and natural organs such as an elephant’s trunk and an octopus’ arm, creating articulated robots, using flexible tubes actuated by internal fluids. The flow of the liquid into different patterns affects the flexible device in different ways, and a well-designed system can lead to precise movement and efficient control.

Robotic Braille monitor

Louis Braille, born January 4, 1809, lost his sight at the age of five. His father created a wooden board for him with nails in the shape of alphabet letters. At the age of 15, Braille developed the code now known as Braille.

For the article in PNAS click here.