Four Israeli projects in the field of life sciences will be funded in the amount of 3 million dollars

The grant is part of an R&D agreement between the state of Massachusetts in the US and Israel

During the world's largest BIO conference in the field of life sciences, the Governor of the State of Massachusetts, Davel Patrick, and the Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Natural Resources, Avi Hasson, presented four Israeli projects in the field of life sciences and cleantech, which will receive funding as part of the R&D agreement signed in March 2011 between the countries
At the BIO conference held recently in Boston, USA, the chief scientist participated accompanied by an Israeli delegation of 15 leading companies in the biomed field. During the conference, which was attended by about 17 people, a press conference was held where four projects were presented that will each receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding.

One project is a joint R&D project of the companies Transbiodiesel and Flodesign, on the subject of producing biodiesel from microalgae and biocatalysts. In a project that allows for increasing the potential of natural sources for biodiesel production, the product's properties have to be improved and waste production minimized. The second project is a joint project between Check Up and Nateos. The project deals with the development of technology and processes for the production of large quantities of the radioactive source, and the concealment mechanism of the Check Cap imaging pill.

The imaging pill will enable early detection of colon cancer, and this cooperation will improve the pill's detection ability. The third project is a joint project between Improdia and SBH. Improdia, a biotechnology company, focuses on the discovery and characterization of biological markers, which will allow monitoring the rate of disease development, and evaluating the state of the immune system in patients suffering from various diseases. In this way, it will be possible to adjust personal and correct treatment to the patient, which will lead to an improvement in the quality of his life and a great saving in costs.

The Improdia company was founded on the basis of a technology developed after many years of research in the laboratory of Professor Michal Beniasch from the Department of Immunology at the Hebrew University, and which received international recognition in the form of scientific publications in the leading press. The company's first product is an innovative and simple kit based on a blood test, which will be used to assess the immune status of patients with diseases characterized by chronic inflammation (such as diabetes, cancer and autoimmune and infectious diseases), with the help of monitoring two of the new biological markers discovered and characterized by the company. The fourth project is shared by the STI Laser company, and the Automated Medical Instrument company, and deals with the development of an innovative ablation catheter. The project will focus on the development of the ablation catheter through the identification and development of micro-sensors for use in the intervascular catheter.

In a personal meeting held between Governor Patrick and the Chief Scientist, the Governor expressed his commitment to promoting cooperation between the countries in the field of high-tech, and agreed upon additional steps to strengthen cooperation in these areas. In addition, the governor expressed his great appreciation for the Israeli industry. The two even held a joint tour of the Israeli pavilion set up at the conference, where company executives presented the technologies they had developed.

The chief scientist, Avi Hasson: "Industry and academia in Massachusetts and Israel are among the leaders in the world in certain fields, and complement each other in many respects. We believe that there is great potential in increasing cooperation between the states, which stems, among other things, from the personal involvement and commitment of Governor Patrick. Assisting Israeli companies in establishing collaborations with companies in Massachusetts is an example of the many activities that take place at the Chief Scientist to promote international collaborations in the field of R&D. I hope and believe that in the coming year we will be able to increase the cooperation between the countries by several degrees".