Israeli Reserve Duty to Earn Academic Credits
The Knesset on Monday passed in its third and final reading a law that will provide two academic credits to students who serve a minimum of 14 annual days of reserve duty.
The measure was a initiated by Education Minister Naftali Bennett (Jewish Home), MK Meirav Ben-Ari (Kulanu), and MK Oren Hazan (Likud) following a report by the Zioinist organization Im Tirtzu.
The Im Tirtzu report revealed that the majority of institutions for higher learning opt not to provide students serving in active reserve duty with academic credits, despite being permitted to do so by law.
The report also discovered that according to the Council for Higher Education, an institution that awards credits to social activity is permitted to do the same for reserve duty, but only 16 out of the 63 institutions for higher learning in Israel have opted to do so.
“This is a historic day in which the entire society recognizes the hardships and sacrifices made by IDF reservists in order to protect the State of Israel and its citizens,” said Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg.
“Reservists are the spearhead of Israeli society, ” added Peleg, “and we are very proud that our work led to this decision.” — From Im Tirzu
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Probe can make cancer cells glow and easier for a surgeon to remove
A new Tel Aviv University study explores a novel smart probe for image-guided surgery that may dramatically improve post-surgical outcomes for cancer patients.
In many kinds of cancers, it is often not the primary malignant tumor, but rather metastasis — the spread of lingering cancer cells to other parts of the body — that kills patients. A multidisciplinary team led by Prof. Ronit Satchi-Fainaro of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine created a smart probe that, when injected into a patient a few hours prior to surgery to excise a primary tumor, may help surgeons pinpoint where the cancer is situated down to several cancer cells, permitting them to guarantee the removal of more cancer cells than ever before.
“In cases of melanoma and breast cancer, for example, the surgeon may believe he/she has gotten everything — that he/she has excised the entire tumor and left the remaining tissue free of cancer. Even if only a few cells linger after surgery, too few or too small to be detected by MRI or CT, recurrence and metastasis may occur,” Prof. Satchi-Fainaro says. “Our new technology can guide the surgeon to completely excise the cancer.”
The study was published in Theranostics on June 21, 2018.
The new technique harnesses near-infrared technology to identify the cancer cells. “The probe is a polymer that connects to a fluorescent tag by a linker. This linker is recognized by an enzyme called cathepsin that is overproduced in many cancer types,” says Prof. Satchi-Fainaro. “Cathepsin cleaves the tag from the polymer and turns on its fluorescence at a near-infrared light.”
The smart probes may potentially be used to guide the surgeon in real time during tumor excision. The surgeon can also avoid cutting out any “non-glowing” healthy tissue.
The scientists first examined the effect of the probe in the lab on regular healthy skin and mammary tissue, and then on melanoma and breast cancer cells. They subsequently used mouse models of melanoma and breast cancer to perform routine tumor excision surgeries and smart probe-guided surgeries.
“The mice that underwent regular surgery experienced recurrence and metastasis much sooner and more often than those who underwent our smart probe-guided surgery,” says Prof. Satchi-Fainaro. “Most importantly, those which experienced the smart probe surgery survived much longer.”
“The probe may also reduce the need for repeated surgeries in patients with cancer cells that remain in the edges of removed tissue,” Prof. Satchi-Fainaro says. “Altogether, this may lead to the improvement of patient survival rates.”
“We are currently designing and developing additional unique polymeric Turn-ON probes for the purpose of image-guided surgery. They can be activated by additional analytes such as reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are overproduced in cancer tissues, or by using other chemiluminescent probes. We are always looking at ways to improve sensitivity and selectivity which are paramount to cancer patients’ care.”
The scientists who conducted the research for the study included Rachel Blau, Yana Epshtein and Evgeni Pisarevsky, all students in Prof. Satchi-Fainaro’s TAU lab. The research is based on long-term collaboration with Prof. Doron Shabat of TAU’s School of Chemistry, Prof. Galia Blum of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and clinicians Prof. Zvi Ram and Dr. Rachel Grossman of the Department of Neurosurgery at Tel Aviv Medical Center. This work was supported by the ERC Consolidator Award, the Israeli National Nanotechnology Initiative (INNI), Focal Technology Area (FTA) program: Nanomedicine for Personalized Theranostics, the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Nanotechnology Research Fund, the Israel Science Foundation and the Israel Cancer Association. — From Tel Aviv University
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Temple Emanu-El to honor LGBTQ+ Pride with a special Shabbat service
Temple Emanu-El in San Diego plans a Pride Shabbat Service at 6 p.m., Friday, July 13, at Ventura Cove on Mission Bay in conjunction with Pride Weekend in San Diego, featuring the annual Pride Parade.
The outdoor Kabbalat Shabbat will be led by Rabbi Yael Ridberg of Congregation Dor Hadash, Rabbi Benji Fried of Temple Emanu-El, and songleader-educator Marshall Voit.
11 young business leaders selected for TAMID Pro mission to Israel
TAMID Pro has announced the names of 11 participants selected for a second annual young business leader mission to Israel. TAMID Pro is supported by the Paul E. Singer Foundation and other private philanthropists.
“Through TAMID, our focus is on training the next generation of top business leaders – and instilling in them a strong and lasting connection to Israel,” said Yoni Heilman, Executive Director of TAMID. “TAMID’s unique programs – through college and beyond – find new ways for students and young professionals to connect with Israel through a strategic, apolitical, business focused approach and curriculum.
TAMID Group’s program is designed to offer experiential business learning, and currently has chapters on 53 college campuses with over 2,500 student members. Beginning with an interactive classroom curriculum, the program soon progresses to give members hands-on experience with companies in the heart of the startup nation.
“During their trip, our TAMID Pro mission participants will sit down with some of the incredible Israeli companies in our network, take in the sights of the Startup Nation, and interact with our summer fellows,” Hellman said. “Last year’s mission participants came back with new business connections, potential investments, and even job offers. We’re looking forward to hearing about the exciting opportunities for this year’s participants. We are extremely grateful for the generous support of the Paul E. Singer Foundation, and other private philanthropists, which allows us to bring this group of amazing young professionals to Israel through TAMID Pro.”
Participants and the areas where their business are located are: From Atlanta, Georgia: Jonathan Schonwetter, Strategy Consultant, Accenture. From Chicago, Illinois: Jonathan Gordon, Consultant, Sg2. From London, England: Adina Steinman, Media Analyst, ECI Media Management; From Los Angeles, California: Stephanie Brill, Engineering Career Foundation Program, Boeing; and David Danesh, Assistant Vice President, George Smith Partners. From New York and suburban New Jersey: Alex Broome, Investment Associate, Arena Investors; Ezra Mosseri, Head of Global App Store Team (Growth Strategies), Uber Technologies; Amanda Nessel, Advisory Senior Associate, PwC; Phil Nydick, Financial Paraplanner, CFS Investment Advisory Services; Ethan Shapiro, Platform Services Analyst, Yext; and Daniel Silvermintz, Director of Finance & Operations, Hornig Capital Partners. —From TAMID Pro.
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Preceding culled from news releases sent to editor@sdjewishworld.com