Basic research and child

In 2006, Prof. Nava Dekal, from the Department of Biological Control at the Institute, discovered that taking tissue samples for examination from the uterus, which is done shortly before IVF treatments, doubles the patient's chances of becoming pregnant * Now a baby girl has been born in Canada thanks to Prof. Dekal's method

Basic research conducted at the Weizmann Institute of Science often leads to useful medical applications. Between a scientific invention and an accessible medical application (drug or treatment method) there is usually a development process that lasts years, and sometimes many years. But findings emerging from research can rarely contribute immediately to improving people's lives.

Such a rare case occurred when in 2006 Prof. Nava Dekel, from the Department of Biological Control at the Institute, discovered that taking tissue samples for examination from the uterus, which is done shortly before IVF treatments, doubles the patient's chances of becoming pregnant (see "The Institute", Issue 43) . Although an exact explanation for the phenomenon has not been found, Prof. Dekel and her research partners - doctors at the in vitro fertilization unit at the "Kaplan" Medical Center, and Dr. Yael Kalama and Dr. Yulia Gnainsky from the Weizmann Institute of Science - hypothesized that the injury caused to the uterine wall during the examination provokes A response that improves the fetus's chances of absorption.

A year later, Prof. Dekel visited Toronto, Canada, and gave a lecture on her research as part of the series "Women, the Weizmann Institute and Science", which is organized by the Society of Friends of the Institute in Canada. A short description of the lecture, published in a local newspaper, caught the attention of Howard and Rosalyn Kamen. After years of undergoing fertility treatments, failed IVF attempts, and abortions, Prof. Dekel's discovery gave them new hope. They contacted the scientist, and she directed them to Dr. Amichai Barash and Dr. Irit Granot from the Kaplan Medical Center, who participated in the original study.

According to the instructions of the doctors from Rehovot, the treatment procedure was carried out at the Fertility Clinic in Toronto. The result: a healthy baby girl named Hanna Esther Angel Kamen was born last October.

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