Accelerating Research Discoveries

ERC Grantees

Accelerating
Research Discoveries

Among the 400 winners of this year’s prestigious European Research Council (ERC) grants from universities across Europe were three Bar-Ilan scientists, whose nearly €5.6 million in funding will help build a research foundation for novel cancer treatments and solutions to basic problems in the pharmaceutical industry.

The Path to Impact

As in the past, the outstanding Bar-Ilan scientists who received this year’s ERC grants are making critical contributions to the advancement of healthcare, with implications for both individuals and entire societies. Other notable contributions to healthcare-related research include a study by Vice President of Research Prof. Shulamit Michaeli of the Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, co-authored with Nobel Laureate Prof. Ada Yonath of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications, the paper explores the effects of RNA modification on protein synthesis in the parasites that cause sleeping sickness.

Another of the year’s studies published in a preeminent journal comes from The Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology: Profs. Aren Maeir and Ehud Weiss co-authored a paper, published in Scientific Reports, that reconstructs the plants used in Philistine rituals, offering new insight into Philistine culture and its ties to wider Mediterranean religious traditions. Their paper, together with this year’s ERC winning-grant from the Faculty of Social Sciences, reflect a commitment by the University to advance excellent scholarship in every field, from the exact and life sciences to the humanities. Indeed, we encourage all members of the Bar-Ilan research community to harness the unique tools, insights, and potential of their disciplines to help solve the world’s biggest challenges. What holds true for the front lines and the home front is true of the scientific front, too: Together—and only together—we will succeed in our goal of impact.

Finally, Bar-Ilan researchers were also recognized for their work in nanoscience, with Prof. Lior Klien of the Department of Physics awarded, together with a group of international researchers, a European Innovation Council (EIC) grant of more than €3 million for the development of a device that will enable faster AI computations.

PROF. SHULAMIT MICHAELI , Vice President for Research, Mina and Everard Faculty of Life, Sciences and the Institute for Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials

Building on Strength

This year, one Bar-Ilan scientist won the ERC Consolidator Grant, which enables outstanding researchers with a track record of success to secure their gains and ensure future breakthroughs by building superb teams and advancing vital projects.

Dr. Ilanit Gordon

Locating the Reasons for Complex Group Outcomes

Dr. Ilanit Gordon of the Department of Psychology and the Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center was awarded €2 million to research multimodal synchrony, or the neural, physiological, and behavioral patterns that underlie successful group functioning. By determining what factors prompt us both to connect with or separate from a group, Gordon hopes to shed light on the contexts, individual traits, and interpersonal interactions that influence group outcomes for the better and can be harnessed for the creation of a more inclusive and productive society.

Starting Early

Two of this year’s ERC grant winners received the ERC Starting Grant, awarded to early-career scientists who have produced outstanding research and demonstrated the potential to become leaders in their fields.

Dr. Assaf Ben-Moshe

Determining the Source of Crystals’ Morphological Asymmetry

Dr. Assaf Ben-Moshe of the Department of Chemistry was awarded €1.5 million to study chirality, or the potential of a molecule to occur in two asymmetric forms that, much like the right and left hand, cannot be superimposed on one another. In particular, he plans to explore the novel theory that the chiral morphology of crystals may not always be determined, as previously believed, by the shape of the constituent molecules, but instead by complex defects. His findings could prove key to our ability to control chirality in a wide range of materials, most notably pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Shahar Alon

Understanding Tumor-Immune System Interactions

Dr. Shahar Alon of the Alexander Kofkin Faculty of Engineering was awarded nearly €2.1 million to study the cellular-level interactions between tumors and the immune system, with the aim of understanding how tumors manage to evade a system attack. Using a proprietary imaging technology for the in-situ sequencing of T cell and B cell receptors, Alon hopes to identify tumor-specific receptors, elucidate immuno-tumor dialogue, and pave the way for more effective immunotherapy cancer treatments.