The biomedical program in the amount of approximately NIS 150 million, which will be distributed mainly to competitive research grants over 7 years. In the first two cycles, 39 fascinating projects from 11 universities and hospitals throughout the country won
The National Science Foundation will hold an international scientific gathering to celebrate the activities of the biomedical program that was launched with the generous support of the Legacy Heritage Foundation (licensed) from New York with the cooperation and additional funding of the National Science Foundation, the Israeli government and private donors in Israel.
The goal of the biomedical program is to support the research of neurodegenerative diseases of the nervous system and genetic disorders, and is one of three unique research support programs initiated and undertaken by the National Science Foundation and the Legacy Heritage Foundation (licensed) in the last five years.
This joint program is dedicated to the promotion of research in genetic and degenerative diseases and is an important and influential initiative in the expansion of medical research in Israel, while attempting to reduce the gap between the modest support currently given to biomedical research and the tremendous potential inherent in the Israeli scientific community, and to enable the seeding of new ideas that will deepen the understanding of the mechanisms of Diseases of this type, and may even lead to original breakthroughs in the ways of treating them.
The biomedical program is pooling resources in the amount of approximately NIS 150 million, which will be distributed mainly as competitive research grants for a period of seven years. So far, in the first two cycles, 39 fascinating projects from 11 universities and hospitals across the country have received a total funding of approximately NIS 21 million. Most funding is given to competitive research grants of individual researchers based on the scientific excellence of the research applications. These personal research grants are usually up to an amount of $100,000 per year for a period of three years, an amount significantly larger than the usual financial support for basic research grants in this field from the largest fund in Israel to support basic scientific research - the National Science Foundation or from other funds operating in Israel.
It should be noted that as a result of the program, researchers with experience and unique areas of specialization in subjects that do not apparently belong to the field of degenerative diseases harnessed their experience to research this type of diseases, while presenting new ideas, technologies and approaches. The phenomenon may be a template for research in other diseases and serve as a nucleus for broader biomedical research initiatives.
Two other programs operating at the foundation that were established thanks to a donation from the Legacy Heritage Foundation are: a licensed program for the admission of outstanding young scientists whose goal is to help prevent brain drain, and a licensed program for clinical research, which supports research carried out in hospitals by physician-researchers. The three programs have a significant impact on basic and clinical scientific research in Israel (detailed below).
The first gathering within the biomedical program: "New Approaches to the Treatment of Degenerative Diseases" will be held in Ein Bokek on January 17 to 20.
The members of the organizing committee are: Professors Michael Fainzilber and Elior Pless from the Weizmann Institute, Professor Miguel Weil from Tel Aviv University, Professor Tamir Ben-Hur from the Hebrew University and Professor Robert Brown from the University of Massachusetts Medical School. 11 Israeli scientists and 16 experts from We were invited to lecture at the gathering. The conference will be opened by Prof. Benny Giger from the Weizmann Institute, the incoming chairman of the academic management of the National Science Foundation, and Prof. Carl Skortsky from the Technion and Rambam Medical Center, the scientific advisor of the Legacy Heritage Foundation.
The topics of the conference range from molecular mechanics of neural health and neurodegenerative diseases of the nervous system, using experimental platforms and approaches, to the development possibilities of innovative treatments. Genetic aspects, immunology and integrative brain activity and diseases such as ALS, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and Huntington's will also be discussed. The last session of the conference is dedicated to the memory of Nir Zoran (2009-1963), the CEO of the Israeli ALS Research Organization (Israels) in 2009-2006, who was a driving force in raising awareness in Israel of the need for clinical and research initiatives in the field of ALS.
The 2 additional research programs shared by the National Science Foundation and the Legacy Heritage Foundation (licensed):
In addition to this program, the Legacy Heritage Foundation within the National Science Foundation provides broad support for other programs. One is a licensed program for the reception of young scientists designed to combat the "brain drain" by assisting the return to Israel of the best young Israeli researchers who have completed post-doctoral research at the best institutions abroad.
This program, which has been operating since 2006, has so far succeeded in assisting the return of 18 outstanding scientists to universities in Israel. Some of them gave up tempting offers from prestigious institutions in the US and Europe in order to return to Israel, knowing that they would be able to perform competitive research at a high level here. The program, which is also funded by the National Science Foundation and the receiving universities, supports the establishment of the most advanced laboratories in the world that enable competition with top international scientists in the specific fields, and also allocates an annual research grant for up to a period of three years.
It is known that the quality of scientific research depends mainly on the scientific level of the researchers, and hence it is clear that this unique program is of great importance and vital to the future of scientific research in Israel.
Another program is a licensed program for clinical research, which is dedicated to creating free time and direct research support for selected young doctors at university hospitals in Israel to enable high-level clinical research. A licensed program for clinical research funded by the National Science Foundation and medical centers throughout the country, allows the hospitals to release their leading clinical researchers and devote 50% of their working time to research at their institution in addition to their clinical work.
The program is considered a breakthrough success in changing the research landscape in Israeli hospitals, and its long-term funding is necessary for the advancement of clinical research in Israel.
The program started in 2007. In the first two years, there were relatively few applications, 13 per year, but their number doubled in the two following cycles. This is a positive sign that reflects the hospitals' willingness to recruit additional faculty and develop the necessary research infrastructure. As of today, 25 researchers from six hospitals have received funding.
Over the years, the National Science Foundation allocated 40-35% of all the grants it awarded to the biomedical field. Recently, much attention has been paid to the need to promote research in this broad field in Israel by a fundamental change in the scope and nature of the support. Among other things, the Israeli National Academy of Sciences established the steering committee to assess the state of biomedical research in Israel, headed by Prof. Ruth Arnon from the Weizmann Institute, who recommended establishing a center to finance biomedical research in Israel. The joint programs of the National Science Foundation with the Legacy Heritage Foundation have become a significant pillar in the expansion and foundation of the growth process and the development of biomedical research in Israel.
For details: Avital Bar - spokeswoman for the foundation 02-5676222; 050-6400993; avital@academy.ac.il
