Head Prof. Eitan Reuveny

Prof. Eitan Reuveny

Head

Prof. Eitan Reuveny

Office +972-8-934-3243

Email e.reuveny@weizmann.ac.il

Overview

The scientific activities in the department of biological chemistry span several areas in the Life Sciences. The common thread is the study of the biochemistry of life and disease. Emphasis is given to the examination of proteins, whether soluble or membrane-bound, and their key biological functions and we seek a molecular understanding of their evolution, cellular interactions, structures and functions. A variety of biochemical, biophysical, structural, molecular-biological, and state of the art imaging methodologies are employed in our department. Overlapping interests and inter-group cooperations signify the spirit of our research. The department has more than 20 research groups whose activities are centered around the following foci of interest:

1. Protein science and macromolecular machines. Several groups investigate the basic principles governing protein-protein interactions; composition, assembly, and architecture of multi-enzyme and other large complexes; catalytic mechanisms and the evolution of proteins and enzymes. A major aim is to understand how the findings relate to intricate biological processes.
    
2. DNA and regulation of gene expression. Various aspects of nucleic acids research are addressed in our department including: DNA repair and mutagenesis in mammals; basal and activated transcription; specific gene expression in the pancreas; phylogenetic analysis of accumulated somatic mutations.
    
3. Structure, function, and biogenesis of membrane proteins. We investigate important integral membrane proteins on the biochemical, biophysical, structural, and physiological levels. This includes Na+ and K+ channels, Na+/K+ ATPase and its FXYD protein regulators, multidrug transporters, intra-membrane proteases, and peptides that integrate into membranes in various systems.
    
4. Membranes, lipids, and organelle structure, function, and biogenesis. Studies in our department include the biosynthetic pathway of membrane proteins; intracellular protein traffic, especially during the process of autophagy; lysosome biogenesis and lipid homeostasis; Calcium homeostasis; and, assembly and function of membrane proteins involved in the immune response, infectious diseases, and viral envelopes.
    
5. Signaling within and between cells. Several researchers in the department are interested in problems related to signal transduction. Cell guidance and navigation; axon guidance; cell death and tissue damage; long distance intracellular signaling; regulation of expression of virulence factors; regulation of the circadian rhythm; epigenetic gene silencing; epigenetics and developmental regulation.
    
6. Molecular basis of disease. Many research programs in our department involve human disorders, diseases, and syndromes. This includes inflammation, infections and antibiotic resistance, organophosphate detoxification, obesity and diabetes, cancer, and lysosomal storage diseases. Many of these disorders are investigated at the molecular level.

A variety of methodologies are being utilized, with an emphasis on biochemistry, biophysics, molecular genetics, advanced light microscopy, computation methods, and structural tools (such as crystallography, atomic force microscope, mass spectrometry). Additional information can be obtained in the department's Home Page.

Head Prof. Eli Pollak

Prof. Eli Pollak

Head

Prof. Eli Pollak

Office +972-8-934-2307

Email eli.pollak@weizmann.ac.il

Overview

Research in the Department covers a broad spectrum of topics, including many subjects of current interest in chemistry and physics. Areas of research include theoretical studies of turbulence, the physics of fractals, properties of glass, chaos (classical and quantum mechanical), tunneling and dissipative phenomena, kinetics, and dynamics in surface condensed phases and ultrafast processes. Other areas include experimental and theoretical diffusion studies of the interaction of coherent light with matter, nonlinear optics, laser-induced processes in van der Waals molecules, coherent control of chemical reactions, cooling of molecules and theoretical quantum optics in dispersive media and in microcavities. A different area of active research is the study of the structure and properties of large molecular systems, and the interaction of electrons and molecules with organized thin films. Molecules on semiconductor surfaces are studied by combination of lasers and STM. A strong magnetic resonance group is active within the department, working on fields such as solid state NMR, MASS NMR of semiconductors, liquid crystals and proteins, porous materials, as well as pulsed EPR and electron-nuclear double resonance on metalloenzymes and porous solids. The department encourages interdisciplinary approaches to science, and there is much collaboration among members of the department and scientists and students from other faculties such as physics and the life sciences.

Head Prof. Ronen Basri

Prof. Ronen Basri

Head

Prof. Ronen Basri

Office +972-8-934-2809

Email ronen.basri@weizmann.ac.il

Overview

The principal interests of the department lie in the areas of computer science and applied mathematics. Research areas include (but are not limited to) algorithms, their design and analysis; biological applications, bioinformatics, system biology, biological modeling; computational complexity, probabilistic proof systems, hardness of approximation, circuit complexity, combinatorial games; computer vision, image processing; cryptography; differential equations; distributed and parallel computing; dynamical systems; fluid dynamics; logic of programs, specification methodologies; machine learning and mathematical statistics; numerical analysis; randomness and its relation to computation; robotics and motion control; visual perception and brain modeling.

The departmental computer facilities include multiple PCs, multiple unix servers, two Linux clusters with multiple nodes, and large data storage systems. In addition, the vision laboratories, robotics laboratories and computational biology laboratories have a combination of experimental equipment and large-scale computing clusters.