WEIZMANN UK

10/06/2026

Are we alone in the universe? We might be a step closer to finding out. A Weizmann Institute of Science led team has developed a new method to detect signs of alien life by analysing patterns in molecules. The research published in Nature Astronomy shows that life consistently leaves behind a more chemically diverse molecular fingerprint than non-living chemistry. Tools were adapted from statistics, ecology and planetary science to read patterns found in amino acids. This new way of searching for extraterrestrial life could be applied to Jupiter's icy moons, Martian rocks, or asteroids using instruments already deployable in space. It works even on ancient, radiation-damaged samples from space. The method was developed as part of a proposed Israeli space mission concept called Eureka, led by Prof. Yohai Kaspi, Prof. Itay Halevy and Dr. Gideon Yoffe of the Weizmann Institute of Science, together with collaborators from Israel Aerospace Industries. https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/space-physics/aliens-amino-acids

A Weizmann-led team proposes a simple but powerful new method for detecting traces of alien biology, whether on Jupiter’s icy moons, in meteorites or in Martian samples

02/06/2026

The COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating impact across the globe, particularly as new strains of the virus began to emerge, but what if we could anticipate how a new virus would mutate, allowing us to be better prepared? Over the course of just a few months, a collaboration between Prof. Gideon Schreiber’s lab at the Weizmann Institute of Science and Dr. Jiří Zahradník’s lab at Charles University in Prague, successfully recreated the evolutionary path that the coronavirus followed during the COVID-19 pandemic, from the original Wuhan strain to the emergence of the highly contagious Omicron variant. The study, published in Nature Communications, was based on an in vitro evolution method developed in Prof. Schreiber’s lab. Back in 2021, the researchers used this method to identify a pair of mutations that make the coronavirus highly contagious. About three months later, Omicron was first identified carrying the exact same pair of mutations. "Our approach makes it possible to identify dangerous variants before they become dominant, helping us prepare for them in advance," says Prof. Schreiber.
https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/pandemic-fast-forward

27/05/2026

Your immune system can remember cancer and fight back. Scientists from Prof. Ziv Shulman's lab at the Weizmann Institute of Science have discovered that memory B cells, the same immune cells that "remember" past infections, can recognise and attack ovarian cancer tumours, producing targeted antibodies against them. They also identified rogue macrophages that block this response, pointing to a potential new target for cancer vaccines and immunotherapies. The study was recently published in Immunity. “Since there had been no previous reports of effective immune memory against cancer, we were sceptical about the significance of the cells we discovered,” says Shulman. “But we decided to give them a chance. We sequenced their genetic ‘recipe’ for antibodies and produced them artificially in the lab. We were amazed to find that more than a third of these antibodies bound strongly to ovarian cancer cells. Because cancer cells originate from the body’s own healthy cells, we wondered at first whether the antibodies were simply attacking human cells indiscriminately, but they bound less effectively to non-cancer cell types. In other words, the memory cells turned out to be a targeted weapon against ovarian cancer.”
https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/when-body-remembers-tumor

27/05/2026

Congratulations Weizmann Institute of Science on this exciting new quantum computing collaboration.

20/05/2026

Mirror-image molecules are not as identical as we thought! New research led by Prof. Ron Naaman from the Weizmann Institute of Science and Prof. Yossi Paltiel at the of Jerusalem has shown that electrons moving through mirror-image molecules experience magnetic fields of different strengths along its path. This is a discovery that fundamentally changes how we understand molecular behaviour. Published in Science Advances, the findings could reshape our understanding of how the first biological molecules, and life itself, came to be.
Read the full story https://www.weizmann.org.uk/science/latest-discoveries/a-glimpse-at-the-origins-of-life-through-a-deceptive-mirror

14/05/2026

New research from the Weizmann Institute of Science and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has uncovered a surprising self-defence trick: intestinal stem cells infected with Salmonella rapidly abandon their "stay young" default and mature into battle-ready epithelial cells equipped with antibacterial defences which limit the infection and help the tissue heal. The study, led by Dr. Sacha Lebon in Dr. Moshe Biton's lab at the Weizmann Institute, with Dr. Matan Hofree of Hebrew University, was published in Nature Immunology and may point toward new treatments for Crohn's disease, other inflammatory conditions, and cancer. Read the Full story: https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/facing-danger-maturity

12/05/2026

What causes prostate cancer to develop resistance to a treatment that initially worked? An international research team, led by Israel Prize laureate Prof. Yosef Yarden at the Weizmann Institute of Science in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland has uncovered a key mechanism behind this resistance, and found that a combination of existing drugs may help overcome it.
In a new study published in EMBO Molecular Medicine, the scientists discovered that a gene alteration found in roughly half of all prostate cancers allows tumours to bypass their dependence on male hormones and instead fuel their growth using cortisol. The team showed that combining anti-androgen therapy with a cortisol-blocking approach could suppress tumour growth and extend survival in mouse models. This research could change how doctors treat and monitor prostate cancer. National Cancer Institute Weizmann Institute of Science Read the full story: https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/novel-molecular-marker-may-improve-prostate-cancer-treatment

11/05/2026

06/05/2026

We’re delighted to share the recent successes of Weizmann scientists who have been awarded prizes or appointed to prestigious academic positions. Huge congratulations to: Prof. Karina Yaniv, Prof. Reshef Tenne, Prof. Jakub Abramson, Prof. Irit Dinur, Prof. Omri Sarig, Dr. Sergey Semenov, Prof. Yifat Merbl, Prof. Yitzhak Pilpel, Prof. Ronny Neumann, Prof. Meital Oren-Suissa and Prof. David Peleg. Weizmann Institute of Science

29/04/2026

New research from the Weizmann Institute of Science has unravelled the mystery of why protein quality control can fail in diseases like neurodegeneration and cancer. It all rests on the way cells untangle misfolded proteins. Rather than forcibly pulling proteins apart, the cell normally works as an energy-efficient machine like a revolving door, harnessing proteins' own natural movement and energy to keep things moving in the right direction. The findings may help explain why this control fails for certain diseases and inspire the development of efficient artificial molecular machines. The research from Prof. Gilad Haran's lab was published in Nature Communications.
Read the Full story
https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/chemistry/revolving-doors-and-efficient-engines-how-proteins-escape-molecular-tangle