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Diseases and conditions where stem cell treatment is promising or emerging. Source: Wikipedia

Since the late 1990s, the Technion has been at the forefront of stem-cell research. Stem cells are the master keys because they can be converted into many different kinds of cells, opening many different doors to potential cures and treatments. Beating heart tissue is one of the major stem cell achievements from the Technion.

Healing the Heart

Technion scientists showed this year that they can turn skin tissue from heart attack patients into fresh, beating heart cells in a first step towards a new therapy for the condition. The procedure may eventually help scores of people who survive heart attacks but are severely debilitated by damage to the organ.

By creating new heart cells from a patient’s own tissues, doctors avoid the risk of the cells being rejected by the immune system once they are transplanted.Though the cells were not considered safe enough to put back into patients, they appeared healthy in the laboratory and beat in time with other cells in animal models.

“We have shown that it’s possible to take skin cells from an elderly patient with advanced heart failure and end up with his own beating cells in a laboratory dish that are healthy and young – the equivalent to the stage his heart cells were in when he was just born,” Prof. Lior Gepstein told the British national paper The Guardian.

Pancreatic Tissue for Diabetes

Prof. Shulamit Levenberg of the Technion, who has spent many years trying to create replacement human organs by building them up on a “scaffold,” has created tissue from the insulin-producing islets of Langerhans in the pancreas surrounded by a three-dimensional network of blood vessels.The tissue she and her team created has significant advantages over traditional transplant material that has been harvested from healthy pancreatic tissue.

“We have shown that the three-dimensional environment and the engineered blood vessels support the islets – and this support is important for the survival of the islets and for their insulin secretion activity”, says Prof. Levenberg of the Department of Biomedical Engineering.

Prof. Joseph Itskovitz-Eldor of the Faculty of Medicine was on the international team that in 1998 first discovered the potential of stem cells to form any kind of tissue and pioneered stem-cell technology. The breakthrough garnered headlines around the world. He is the Director of the Technion Stem Cell Center.

Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation and application of robots and computer systems for their control, sensory feedback, and information processing. These technologies deal with automated machines that can take the place of humans, in hazardous or manufacturing processes, or simply just resemble humans. Many of today’s robots are inspired by nature contributing to the field of bio-inspired robotics.

Watch robots come to life with this New Year Hip Hop greeting from Technion to its friends and colleagues around the world.

The creation of machines that could operate autonomously dates back to classical times, but research into the functionality and potential uses of robots did not grow substantially until the 20th century. Throughout history, robotics has been often seen to mimic human behavior, and often manage tasks in a similar fashion. Today, robotics is a rapidly growing field, as we continue to research, design, and build new robots that serve various practical purposes, whether domestically, commercially, or in search and rescue.

In 2012, Reuters reported that Intel will be collaborating with Technion scientists in research that could yield devices that even mimic the human brain by 2014 or 2015.

Many of the robotic solutions emerging around the world today can save lives, such as the micro robot marketed by the company Mazor, founded out of innovations from the laboratory of Technion Prof. Moshe Shoham. Yet beyond the first frontier of research, robots also offer a great way to inspire the upcoming generation with an interest in technology and ingenuity.

These future young engineers can be seen below receiving a class from RoboThespian™. As its name implies, RoboThespian is a dramatic actor robot complete with gestures, facial expressions and flirtatious eyes. This experimental live lesson was given in the framework of the project conducted by Prof. Igor Verner of the Technion’s Department of Education in Technology and Science and Dr. Takuya Hashimoto of Tokyo University of Science together with Alex Polishuk and Niv Krainer of MadaTech and Technion. RoboThespian™, produced by “Engineered Arts” of the UK, was bought two years ago by MadaTech for the robotics exhibition held there.

Watch the video below to see some of the Technion’s other robots in action. Students and Faculty members from Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science create these amazing robots in the Biorobotics and Biomechanics, Control and Robotic and Intelligent Systems laboratories.

By Vincent Zurawski, PhD

Iron Chelator-Based Neurodegenerative Drug for Treatment of Wound Infections and MDR BacteriaOccasionally, a chance alignment of circumstances can lead to an unexpected and highly productive outcome, one with the potential to induce a sea change in a particular field of endeavor. A novel small molecule called VK28, developed by Prof. Emeritus Moussa Youdim and his colleagues at the Technion and the late Prof. Abraham Warshawsky at the Weizmann Institute of Science, found its way to an unexpected collaborative research program involving Clinical Research Management contract researchers at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) in Silver Spring, Maryland, and at Varinel, Inc., the company to which VK28 had been licensed for commercial development.

VK28 – also known as VAR10100 – was originally developed by Youdim, Varinel’s scientific founder, as a brain-selective and brain-permeable iron chelator, a chemical entity with the ability to bind up free iron. VK28 was designed to target treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease. An iron chelator penetrating the blood-brain barrier might be expected to bind up and remove free iron from brain cells, providing a neuroprotective effect by eliminating an important source of tissue-damaging free radicals that can be stimulated by the presence of iron. Free radicals are highly reactive and can severely damage and even kill the very cells we use to think. Indeed, Youdim and colleagues showed that, in two animal models of Parkinson’s disease, VK28 was not only neuroprotective, but also neurorestorative and lowered the toxic brain iron that accumulates.

“The emergence of MDR bacterial strains has become a significant challenge for clinicians and caregivers.” During the product development process aimed at advancing VK28 to clinical trials, Varinel also developed a VK28 derivative called VAR10103 with potential as a drug candidate.

As luck would have it, my son, Daniel Zurawski, is a principal investigator and contracted at WRAIR to develop new therapies and preventive medicines for wound infections, especially those involving multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria. The emergence of MDR bacterial strains has become a significant challenge for clinicians and caregivers of the U.S. military as wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are often infected with bacteria that are resistant to most, if not all, current antibiotic treatment.

Because iron is an essential nutrient for all bacteria, including MDR bacteria, it was thought that treatment of wounds before or after a bacterial infection with an iron chelator alone or in conjunction with antibiotic therapy might provide the required antibacterial effect to keep infections in check. Sure enough, under the auspices of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between Varinel and the U.S. Army and Department of Defense, both VK28 and VAR10103 have proven effective, in the laboratory, at stopping bacteria in their tracks, and they have proven to be synergistic with certain antibiotics in targeting MDR-resistant organisms. These results were presented at the 2011 ICAAC Meeting in Chicago. At WRAIR, both compounds are now being tested in animal models of infection along with some other iron chelators that showed promise in vitro.

The same chemical entities with the potential to protect brain cells may also provide the means to deliver a knock-out punch to bacteria that would otherwise elude treatment. It all begins with the kind of solid scientific effort that is traditional at the Technion, and which has led to its world recognition.

Dr Vincent Zurawski is Founding President of Varinel and its Chief Scientific Officer.

Disclaimer: The findings and opinions expressed herein belong to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the WRAIR, the U.S. Army, or the Department of Defense.

Cortica gets $7M to bestow computers with the power of sight.

Image: Cortica website.

Israeli startup Cortica raised $7 in a second round of funding. The investment was led by Horizons Ventures, owned by the Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing. Venture capitalist Ynon Kreiz also participated in the round, as did Ynon Kreiz, the former Chairman & CEO of the Endemol Group, the world’s largest independent television production company. The company had already raised $4 million from a group of high quality angel investors. Mr. Kreiz joins Cortica as its Chairman; founder Technion graduate Igal Raichelgauz continues as CEO.

Cortica’s image recognition technology fuses neuroscience and computer science by imbuing computers the ability to comprehend visual content on the web in real-time. The core technology was developed at Technion, in Haifa, Israel, by a team of neuroscientists and digital media experts. The technology functions similarly to the human cortex and can identify patterns, and make classifications.

Cortica was conceived in 2006 with a vision to fundamentally revolutionize the way computers understand images and video. The essence of Cortica’s Image2Text™ technology lies in its ability to automatically extract the core concepts in images and video, and map these concepts to key-words and textual taxonomies.

By virtue of their ability to simulate the appearance of the physical world, pictures drive interest, sentiment and commercial intent. Cortica’s product reads and automatically associates images with relevant ads. This groundbreaking model gives publishers a completely new monetization stream and provides brands and marketers the opportunity to reach highly targeted mass audiences.

Cortica was founded by Technion researchers, Prof. Yehoshua (Josh) Zeevi (Faculty of Electrical Engineering); Karina Odinaev; and engineer Igal Raichelgauz, who assembled a multi-disciplinary team of neuroscience researchers, digital multimedia experts and veterans of Israeli military intelligence to develop and commercialize the technology. The underlying technology was derived from scientific research focused on understanding how neural networks of the human cortex perform complex computational tasks, such as identifying patterns, classifying natural signals and understanding concepts.

Cortica’s commercial team will relocate to the US and will be based in NY with an office in Silicon Valley. The first commercial applications of the technology will transform advertising, search and image analytics

The Technion has an unmatched position within (and outside) Israel in neuro-engineering, and is recognized as a leader in the application of engineering methods and principles to the study of neural systems. Indeed, in addition to Cortica, several successful companies have stemmed from the Technion’s activity in this field (e.g., “BrainsGate”, “Elminda”, “GeneGrafts”, “Neurovibes”).

Image: LiveU Website

Technion graduates are bringing pictures of the 2012 London Olympics live to your homes. Going live with the 2012 Olympic games, the innovative Israel-born company LiveU introduced an innovative technology that allows a small device to use conventional mobile network signals to broadcast live events, as they happen.

The Technion brain-powered start-up already has a powerful global track record: it delivered live broadcasts of events such as the Royal Wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton; the 2011 Oscars and the Grammy Awards 2011; and the 2012 Super Bowl.

London 2012 is also hosting another new Israeli technology: Mobli – according to the Embassy of Israel in London. Mobli – a real-time visual media platform – is being employed by Serena Williams to update her followers on the action in London. Williams is an investor in the company, which is also populated by Technion graduates and was founded by Israeli entrepreneur Moshe Hogeg.

“Mobli is the perfect platform for me for sharing my experiences, both the great and the not so great, during the Olympic Games,” said Williams. “I hope that my fans will connect to the channel, to participate and share with me in this unique experience.”

Prof. Dan Shechtman is a research professor in the Faculty of Materials Engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. In 2011, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of quasicrystals. But not a lot of people know that he is also a talented jewelry craftsman.

1972, Dayton, Ohio. It all began innocently enough. Zippi, Dan’s wife, was busy in the evenings studying for a Master’s Degree in Sociology, and Dan Shechtman, a postdoctoral fellow, found himself studying stone polishing in the arts center during his free time. Before long, five pairs of polished stones accumulated. Each pair, a different color. What would he do with them? He found himself attending a silver jewelry making course, from that moment onwards, sensitively and delicately, Dan has been creating and designing jewelry. Jewelry for his wife: only for his wife.

An exhibition of handcrafted jewelry created by Nobel Laureate Dan Shechtman was displayed on campus. The exhibition showcased 15 unique pieces ranging from earrings, necklaces and bracelets with a single item — an Aztec-inspired silver belt buckle— which Distinguished Prof. Shechtman made for himself.

The exhibition, curated by Anat Har-Gil, took place June 10 to June 14, 2012, on campus.

Mazor Robotics Renaissance surgical system

Image: Mazor Website.

FDA approves Mazor robot for brain surgery

“As neurosurgeons focus on both the spine and brain, brain surgeries represent a large market opportunity that is closely aligned with our current focus.”

Mazor Robotics Ltd. has announced that it has obtained US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its Renaissance surgical guidance system for brain surgery, in addition to spinal procedures. The company will include the brain surgical capability in the same device currently sold for spinal procedures
.
Mazor CEO Ori Hadomi has said in the past that Mazor is a company operating in the spinal procedures field, and that it expected to remain so. The expansion to the brain surgical field is an important addition, but not a core business. Mazor has previously said that the addition of new capabilities to the Renaissance surgical guidance system could allow the company to raise the system’s price, which is currently $750,000 per unit for the spinal surgery version.

Mazor had NIS 9.2 million in sales for the first quarter of 2012. Since April, the company has announced the sale of five additional systems in the US. The company also operates in other countries, where prices for its systems are a bit less than in the US, but the number of sales is about the same. The company obtained marketing approval in South Korea in June.

Mazor is now waiting for EU CE Mark approval for the marketing of the Renaissance system for brain surgery in Europe, where it is currently limited to use for spinal surgical procedures.

Mazor Surgical Technologies has pioneered the development of miniature Semi robotic bone mounted positioning systems SmartAssist platform for a wide range of orthopedic procedures. Mazor is a leading provider of the SpineAssist, a highly accurate, minimally invasive, easy-to-use, miniature surgical assistance system for a wide range of spine procedures. The company was founded by Prof. Moshe Shoham of the Technion Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in order to put his patented robotic innovations into practice.

The Renaissance technology, a surgical guidance system originally designed for use in spine surgeries, is applicable in brain procedures for many applications including biopsies, shunt placements and neurostimulation electrode placement for deep brain stimulation (DBS). Along with the system’s precision, simplicity, and safety profile, the Renaissance System will also provide a frameless treatment solution for brain procedures. Renaissance has already been successfully employed in several clinical brain surgical procedures in Europe. 34 hospitals globally are currently using Renaissance for the different types of spine surgery.

“While our core is spine surgery, we are thrilled that our technology can be expanded to improve other surgical procedures,” stated Ori Hadomi, chief executive officer. “As neurosurgeons focus on both the spine and brain, brain surgeries represent a large market opportunity that is closely aligned with our current focus. Achieving U.S. regulatory clearance provides us with the opportunity to assist neurosurgeons in improving brain surgery processes and the ensuing clinical outcomes.”

Technion Researchers Construct a Polymeric Scaffold Array with Pancreatic Islets Surrounded by a Vascular Network. This heralds the potential for the fabrication of transplantable “islets”.

Technion researchers have succeeded in constructing a three-dimensional polymeric scaffold array with pancreatic islets surrounded by a vascular network, reports the scientific journal PLoS ONE.

“We have shown that the three-dimensional environment and the engineered blood vessels support the islets – and this support is important for the survival of the islets and for their insulin secretion activity”, says Prof. Shulamit Levenberg of the Department of Biomedical Engineering. “We have shown that these laboratory-made polymeric scaffolds can be transplanted subcutaneously and can heal a diabetic mouse. The ability to increase the islets’ vasculature and to support their post-transplant survival could allow the transplant of four times less islets than is customary in transplants in mice, while still achieving decreased blood sugar levels and diabetes relief”.

The mechanism which causes the failure of pancreatic islet transplants is as yet not entirely clear, but the prevailing opinion is that it has to do with ischemic damage – and a delay in the creation of new blood vessels.

The Technion researchers hypothesize that blood vessels also have an active role in inter-cellular communication that supports the survival and function of pancreatic islets. To test this hypothesis, the researchers developed a three-dimensional network of endothelial blood vessels in engineered pancreatic tissues produced from islets, fibroblasts and endothelial cells. This triple array, which was seeded on highly porous polymeric scaffolds, mimics the natural anatomical context of pancreatic vasculature.

“We have shown that the increase in islet survival is correlated with creation of surrounding endothelial tubes”, says Prof. Levenberg. “Adding fibroblasts to pancreatic islet and endothelial cell cultures encouraged the creation of the vascular network, which supported islet survival as well as insulin secretion. Significant differences were seen in many variables – gene expressions, profiles of the growth factors of endothelial cells, ECM, morphogens and screening markers – between two-dimensional culture systems and three-dimensional culture systems that allow an endothelial network, and such differences were even greater after fibroblasts were added that support the creation of the engineered blood vessels.”

Transplanting the vascularized engineered islet tissue has improved the survival and acceptance of such islets in diabetic mice, and has even improved their function in decreasing blood glucose. The Technion researchers hope that these findings herald potential strategies for the fabrication of transplantable islets with improved survivability.

The work was done by research student Keren Francis in Prof. Levenberg’s laboratory and in cooperation with Yuval Dor from the Hebrew university, under a joint research grant provided by Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International.

The laboratory is now researching the effect of the vascular network and the three-dimensional growth on human islets, under joint finance of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International and the Israel Science Foundation.

Published Scientific Paper.

PATENT DETAILS3D vascularized pancreatic islets – for islets transplantation

Ref. CTT-0895

The present invention provides a unique 3D pancreatic-like model for co-culture of isolated pancreatic islets with endothelial cells on a PLLA/PLGA biodegradable polymeric scaffold.
Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) is a chronic inflammatory disease in which there is autoimmune-mediated organ-specific destruction of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreatic islets of Langerhans, resulting in glucose homeostasis abnormalities and metabolic complications that are debilitating and life-threatening. Islet transplantation is a potentially curative treatment since replacement of these cells could prevent mortality, however thus far islet cell transplantation has had poor success due mainly to the fact that the tissue grafts must establish new vasculature from the host to survive. Native islets in the pancreas have a rich microvasculature that provides efficient oxygen and nutrient delivery and ensures rapid dispersal of pancreatic hormones to the circulation, and therefore after implantation, the survival and function of islet grafts depends on reestablishment of new blood vessels. During the time required for revascularization, there is a much-increased susceptibility to loss from ischemic injury, so that rapid and adequate islet revascularization is crucial for the survival and function of transplanted islets. In both experimental and clinical islet transplantations, islets are cultured for several days between isolation and transplantation.
The present invention provides an advanced tissue-engineering technique for development of 3D co-culture systems that reconstruct vascularization of pancreatic tissue ex-vivo. In this novel engineered 3D pancreatic model, isolated pancreatic islets can be co-cultured with endothelial cells using PLLA/PLGA biodegradable polymeric scaffolds. The endothelial cells organize into 3D tubes throughout the engineered construct and form vascular network-like structures resembling in-vivo vasculature. This presence of endothelial cells forming 3D vessel-like structures was found critical for islet survival. This model can provide an important tool for therapeutic transplantation of islets, greatly increasing the success of the procedure by increasing islet survival and reducing the number of organ donors needed per transplant and the number of repeated transplants, making this procedure more available, biologically and economically. This model also provides new exciting tools for studying central problems in molecular and cell biology of the pancreas.
In the U.S, an estimated 20.8 million people (7% of the population) have diabetes mellitus. In the next five years, around US$2.5 billion will be spent worldwide on diabetes mellitus research.

A view of the center of the ATLAS

Technion researchers are playing important roles at the LHC project in CERN – the world’s most powerful particle accelerator. Recently, news reports say the greatest scientific experiment in history has had amazing results and that the Higgs Boson – alias the “God particle” – has been discovered.

During the sixties and seventies, a model was developed that explains phenomena observed in the world of particles that comprise the entire universe. The model, which is called the “Standard Model”, explains brilliantly and accurately all experimental results and observations. But this model has originally had a problem: it could not be used to explain particles that have a mass. It is simply that mathematically, the equations did not hold if the mass of these particles was added to them. In the mid-sixties, several physicists, among them Peter Higgs, suggested what is currently known as the “Higgs mechanism”, through which mass can be added to the Standard Model. But adding this mechanism meant that a new particle had to exist – the Higgs Boson. We have been searching for it ever since. Last night, the world was told of its discovery.

This is, without a doubt, a technological achievement, but the real achievement is not in the technological realm, but rather in the news that the model we have been following is likely the correct one. We have, in fact, completed our first puzzle. We can now safely proceed in search of the next puzzle, namely the “new physics” or “physics beyond the Standard Model”, where we investigate phenomena that are not described by the Standard Model. Each such discovery, if made, will completely change our perception of the universe around us.

The Technion group has made a major contribution to the discovery, in that the construction and examination of the muon detectors, which are a critical part of the experiment’s ability to measure the events, were done in Israel. The muon detection software was developed by Prof. Tarem, and Prof. Rozen is responsible for the tremendous grid computing system. Students guided by Prof. Tarem developed the detector control system, and several students and researchers are now working under her guidance on one of the Higgs decay channels, as presented in the press conference last night.

About three years ago, only a moment before the huge tunnel in which the accelerator was built was sealed, Avi Blizovsky visited the place and we now bring his impressions once again.

We visited “ATLAS” – one of the main detectors in the LHC project in CERN. In a modest office in building number 40 – one of the main buildings on the CERN campus – seats Prof. Shlomit Tarem, of the High Energy Group in the Technion’s Department of Physics. Prof. Tarem is participating in the project together with her colleague in the group, Prof. Yoram Rozen, and their graduate students. The office houses also post-doctoral fellow Sofia Vallecorsa (originally of Rome) and doctoral student Sagi Ben-Ami. Among the Israeli group members are also researchers from the Weizmann Institute and Tel Aviv University. With them works Arwa Bannoura, a student from Birzeit who lives in Bethlehem, and who is currently in CERN for the summer semester.

The Israeli group is headed by Giora Mikenberg of the Weizmann Institute, who has held in the past formal positions in CERN. According to Mikenberg, the credit for Israel joining the project is due, first and foremost, to the late Prof. Paul Singer of the Technion’s Department of Physics, who served as Chairman of the Israel Science Foundation.

During its construction, Israeli engineers collaborated with engineers of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, and Israeli equipment allows fast and accurate optical communications between the facilities and the enormous server cluster. Many Israeli companies participated in building “ATLAS”, the huge facility that comprises 2,700 detectors on eight “wheels” 20 meters in diameter. Once the tunnel was sealed in August it could no longer be entered, which emphasizes the importance of the examinations conducted toward this move, to avoid technicians having to enter the tunnel in order to make repairs once the experiment begins.

The different elements of the CERN project were indeed examined prior to the start of the experiment, but the operation of the project as a whole could not be tested at the time. As was announced, the project was shut down for two months shortly after it began, because of a helium leak, but Prof. Tarem cautions against any concern. “This experiment will last for at least a decade, so two months are not too significant a period. Besides, malfunctions cannot be avoided in such a big, complicated experiment.”

Today, Profs. Tarem and Rozen and thousands of their colleagues worldwide can smile with pride and satisfaction. They were part of the discovery of the “God particle”.

A graphic diagram of the particle accelerator in Geneva

From right to left: Eli Hadash, Shikma Bressler, Silvia Behar, David Cohen, Yoram Gernitzky, Alon Hershenhorn and Yaniv Katan. In the second row: Sofia Vallecorsa, Dikla Oren, and Enrique Kachomovitz. Prof. Rozen (horizontal).

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Technion graduate Mooly Eden, Intel.

Intel buys heart beat biometrics company IDesia Biometrics, which provides technology through which heart beats can be used to recognize users on PCs and mobile devices

Source

Idesia Biometrics provides technology through which heart beats can be used to recognise users on PCs and mobile devices. The technology can also be used to provide health information.

With over 500 patents to his name, Technion graduate and co-founder of Idesia Biometrics Yossi Gross is one of Israel’s most powerful pioneers at the vanguard of biotech innovation. Launching his technological career within the Lavi program of Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), Gross went on to initiate 27 medical device companies. Intel’s recent acquisition could be energized by the search for more secure forms of identifying users, and/or even by its new ventures into mobile applications for health care. Idesia has 14 employees of which 10 are in Israel.

Co-founder and inventor Technion graduate of Electrical Engineering (1987) Dr. Danny Lange is also an ongoing source of biotech innovation. “As an entrepreneur, the most important thing is that the technology will be brought to market, and it looks like Intel is the company that can ensure that,” Lange told Globes , which first reported the story.

Dr. Danny Lange,
Technion graduate in Electrical Engineering.

Lange is experienced in running both fledgling and well-established technology businesses. Prior to IDesia, he co-founded and held executive positions of two medical device companies in the field of patient monitoring (Algodyne Ltd. and Earlysense Ltd.), invented their core technologies and authored more than a dozen patents covering his inventions. Earlier still, Dr. Lange served as senior R&D engineer at Hewlett-Packard Research Laboratories, and as a Research Associate and Lecturer at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Dr. Lange holds a B.Sc., M.Sc. and Ph.D., all in Electrical Engineering from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

Intel has not yet commented on how much it paid for Idesia or how it will use the biometric technology. Fingerprint readers and face recognition have been used for some time to recognize users, but there are concerns that those technologies can be easily tricked. Monitoring heart beats could provide Intel a more advanced and secure way to recognize users.

Technion graduates at Intel’s R&D center in Israel developed the architecture behind the popular Core and Core 2 microprocessors, and the country’s operations are headed by Technion graduate Mooly Eden, who previously managed the PC client group at Intel.

Intel has a big interest in the health care industry and is in a joint venture with General Electric to provide in-home heath care products. The joint venture, called Care Innovations, provides products like tablets targeted at the health care industry. Intel is also conducting research on health care for senior citizens.

Technion Alumn Yossi Gross
Gross received an MSc degree in 1976 in aeronautical engineering.

Technion graduate Yossi Gross (born February 5, 1947) is an Israeli medical device innovator and entrepreneur. He is a founding partner of Rainbow Medical, an operational investment company, established to launch companies based on the technological ideas and inventions of Gross. Gross first started his professional career as a project manager of the Lavi (IAI Lavi ) program for the Israel Air Force.

Since the 1990, Gross initiated 27 medical device companies based on his various inventions in electronics, signal processing, nanotechnology, drug delivery and neurostimulation. Gross’s companies have developed or are currently developing treatments for diabetes, gastroenterology, stroke, ophthalmology, asthma, congestive heart failure, and urology. In total, Gross has 567 filed patents.

See also: The Creative Mind of Yossi Gross [PDF]

Also on the IDeasia Biometrics Team:

Technion graduate Dikla Horesh:

Over 5 years experience as Biomedical engineer in IDesia Biometrics and Healthcare.

ECG signal processing as part of the Algorithm team for 3 years.
Managed the consumer Healthcare department in IDesia for 2 years.