Prof. Amir Pnueli developed sophisticated methods for verifying the correctness and reliability of computer hardware and software. He used a mathematical language called temporal logic, which makes it possible to formulate and prove theorems that contain statements relating to time.
Application
Pnueli’s research is being implemented in control systems of nuclear reactors and space missile launchers. It is also being considered for use in creating “smart roads” equipped with sensors for preventing traffic accidents.
In the late 1960s, Institute scientists Profs. Ruth Arnon and Michael Sela and Dr. Dvora Teitelbaum synthesized several molecules known as copolymers. They were hoping to create an animal model for studying multiple sclerosis. Surprisingly, rather than causing symptoms of MS, the copolymers were found to block an MS-like disease in mice.
Application
One of the copolymers eventually became a major MS medication for humans. Produced by Teva Pharmaceuticals Ltd. under the name Copaxone®, it has been approved for marketing in Israel, the United States and Europe.
Prof. Zeev Vager and his Weizmann colleagues developed innovative radiation detectors based on electron amplification and other technological principles.
Application
El-Mul Technologies, Ltd. was created on the basis of two Weizmann Institute technologies for the detection of charged particles and radiation. The company supplies particle detection solutions for semiconductor manufacturing tools, industrial electron microscopy and mass spectrometry.
Prof. Meir Wilchek developed a method called affinity chromatography for separating biological materials, such as enzymes, antibodies, hormones and receptors. Prior to the advent of this method, many years of research were often needed to isolate a few milligrams of a substance.
Application
Since the 1970s, affinity chromatography has served as an important tool in all biotechnological fields, including genetic engineering and advanced fields of medicine and biology.
Since the 1960s, Prof. Meir Wilchek has studied "biorecognition”: the process in which biological substances "recognize" one another and form a bond. In particular, Wilcheck and his colleagues have focused on the strongest biological bond in nature, formed by the egg-white protein avidin and the vitamin biotin.
Application
Institute research on the avidin-biotin bond has provided the basis for thousands of applications in medicine, research and industry. Probes containing the avidin-biotin complex today constitute a $250 million a year market. Uses range from pollution control and blood clotting to diagnosis of genetic diseases, AIDS and various kinds of cancer.
Prof. David Givol spent a significant part of his career investigating the structure-function relationship of antibodies. He identified the smallest fragment of antibody containing all its binding properties, i.e. the part of the molecule responsible for recognizing the foreign substance attacking the organism.
Application
Today, this fragment – called Fv – is used in genetic engineering techniques for producing synthetic antibodies for treating various diseases.
Prof. Irun Cohen discovered that a key protein in pancreatic cells, known as HSP60, can prompt an attack by immune T cells. He later showed that injecting diabetic mice with a small fragment of HSP60 shuts down this immune response, preventing the progression of type 1 diabetes.
Application
DIAPEP 277, a vaccine based on Cohen’s research, was shown in clinical trials to alleviate the condition of people with juvenile (type 1) diabetes. It was originally produced by the Israeli company Peptor Ltd, and today is being developed by Aventis, one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies.
Interleukin-6, which, among its other effects, stimulates the production of red blood cells and helps control metastases, was first isolated and cloned by Prof. Michel Revel.
Application
Interleukin-6 was developed into a drug by InterPharm Laboratories Ltd. in Kiryat Weizmann, which uses it in advanced clinical trials.
Prof. David Harel studied ways to program computer systems based on the use of visual structures.
Application
Harel’s research led to Statecharts, a revolutionary graphic computer language for the design of complex systems. Today, Statecharts is used around the world in the aircraft, automotive and chemical industries, and in communications systems. It also led to a new avenue of research for exploring living systems and is already being applied to study the immune system.
Math & Computer Science
English
Computer Science and Applied Mathematics
Computer Science and Applied Mathematics›Computer Science and Applied Mathematics
Prof. Adi Shamir, together with two colleagues from the United States, developed an algorithm (now called RSA, for the last initials of its inventors) that allowed for the delivery of encrypted codes and their decryption (by public key) between parties that had not previously been in contact.
Application
The RSA algorithm is used worldwide to secure Internet, banking and credit card transactions. An additional algorithm developed by Prof. Shamir and colleagues led to the development of the smart cards used in TV satellite receivers to ensure that only subscribers receive broadcasts.
Verifying correctness and reliability of computer hardware and software
Application