Obituary for Gad Galili, ASPB (American Society of Plant Biologists)
Our friend, colleague, and mentor, Gad Galili, passed away on November 15th, 2025. Gadi was born in Ramat Gan, Israel, on September 19, 1952. His mother was born in Berlin, and his dad's family was from Israel for several generations. He liked to tell that he was a mischievous child who spent more time out of the classroom than in it. As a result, he was sent to an agricultural boarding school where he got his first taste of working with field crops and dairy cattle. A chance meeting with a girl he knew in his neighborhood, who was a high-level math student, and a comment from a teacher who told him that nothing would come of him, caused Gadi to throw himself into his studies, and in a short time, he became the best student in the class. After his military service, he studied agriculture at the Faculty of Agriculture in Rehovot. In 1980, he earned a Master's degree in Plant Genetics from the Weizmann Institute, under the supervision of Professor Karl Jakob, where he studied changes in chromatin structure at the replication fork. In 1984, he received a Ph.D. in Plant Genetics from the Weizmann Institute, under the supervision of Prof. Moshe Feldman. There, he mapped the High Molecular Weight Glutenin protein-coding genes and studied gene dosage compensation of endosperm proteins in hexaploid wheat (Galili et al. 1986). Then, between 1984 and 1987, he moved to Purdue University for a Postdoc in Brian Larkin’s lab, where he worked on the gene expression regulation of Zein proteins, showing the role of 3’-Poly(A) tails in ribosome loading on Zein mRNA and translation (Galili et al. 1986). In 1987, Gadi started his career as an independent scientist at the Weizmann Institute Department of Plant Genetics, where he became a full Professor. Science was his passion. His brilliant career was interrupted when his health deteriorated a few years ago.
Prof. Gad Galili will be remembered as a pioneering and deeply influential scientist whose work fundamentally reshaped our understanding of plant metabolism. His most enduring contribution was his groundbreaking elucidation of lysine biosynthesis and catabolism in plants, a field in which he was regarded worldwide as a true authority (see review, (Galili et al. 2016)). In fact, he was the first to examine the expression of genes from bacteria related to plant metabolism. Through decades of meticulous and creative research, he uncovered the molecular regulation of key enzymes such as dihydrodipicolinate synthase and laid the foundation for metabolic engineering strategies aimed at enhancing essential amino acids in crops. Gadi’s work on Lysine and later on the shikimate pathway became textbook material on plant metabolism (Angelovici et al. 2011; Galili 1995; Tzin and Galili 2010; Zhu and Galili 2003; Tang et al. 1997). His earlier work on storage proteins folding, assembly, maturation, and packaging into insoluble bodies led him to discover a new intracellular route of vesicle transport directly from the ER to the storage vacuole, bypassing the Golgi. This discovery led him to become a pioneer in autophagy research in plants, discovering about 10 genes involved in the process, including plant-specific ones and showing their roles in selective autophagy, in the transport of proteins to the vacuole, in stress response, and in germination (Honig et al. 2012; Michaeli et al. 2014; Xie et al. 2016). His vision extended beyond individual pathways: he helped establish the conceptual framework for how amino-acid metabolism integrates with plant development, stress responses, and seed nutritional quality (Fait et al. 2006). Prof. Galili’s insights, amplified through his leadership in applying genomics and systems biology to plant metabolic networks, continue to shape the direction of plant science today. He leaves behind a legacy of scientific excellence, generosity, and mentorship that will continue to inspire future generations.
Throughout his career, Gadi remained committed to his original biological questions, but when it came to the methodology, be it molecular, structural biology, enzymology, microscopy, analytical chemistry, etc.. he was fearless to go into any direction that could provide him with a new insight, and he kept thinking out of the box. He was passionate, creative, and when he set his mind to something, he could be focused, even obsessive, until he reached his goal. His impact on plant
biology was huge, with more than >250 publications, tens of students and postdocs now in academic or leading industrial positions, and a broad spectrum of international collaborations and friendships. He received several awards, including a nomination as ASPB Pioneer Member.
At the personal level, Gadi was an amazing friend and colleague. He was almost always smiling, ready to tell a good joke or describe a new finding, always with joy and excitement. He was an optimist, always seeing the good in people, cheering us and convincing us that things would turn out for the better. When he became department head, he was happy to delegate responsibilities, trusting people, and he would be able to deal with delicate situations in a non-conflicting manner, convincing people to do what he wanted through his sense of humor and his natural charm. He was a kind man, empathic, and ready to help. He loved his students, and they, along with everyone else, loved him. His mentees laud him as an inspirational, passionate, encouraging, and supportive mentor as well as a true friend whose enthusiasm and optimism were contagious. As a mentor, he was critical, precise, yet caring and empowering. He was also a promoter of gender equality before it became a fashionable cause. Occasionally, he would invite the male partner of his female students for a chat and explain to them how important the work that she does is, and why they should do more to help her advance as a scientist. Whatever he did worked; Several of his female students became leading scientists.
Gadi is survived by his wife, Smadar, his daughters, his grandchildren, and his brothers. We all miss him. May his memory be a blessing.
Avi Levy Asaph Aharoni Rachel Amir
Weizmann Institute Weizmann Institute Tel Hai College
of Science of Science
What Gadi said or taught his mentees:
“There is no such thing as people who do not understand. There are researchers who do not explain their research properly,” Dr. Simon Michaeli, Beit Dagan, Israel
“We were always impressed by his ability to see potential in "failed" experiments. His enthusiasm for every experiment energized us, and his inquisitive mind continually propelled us forward.” Dr Yuval and Dr Judy Shimoni, California, USA
“He taught us to see autophagy as the cell‘s master strategist,” Dr. Qingjun Xie Guangzhou, China
“Inspired by Gadi, when I explain what I do for a living, I say that I do science and raise scientists.” Dr. Tamar Avin-Wittenberg, Jerusalem, Israel
“His unique virtue was to put his student's success ahead of his own: "Let me know how I can work for you" was one of his signature sentences.” Arik Honig, Rehovot, Israel
“To read and to read the literature,” Prof. Rachel Amir, Tel Hai, Israel
“Every result can hold a clue if you look closely enough,” Dr. Shai Ufaz, Haifa, Israel
“Engaging in scientific research is true freedom for the soul,” Dr. Rakefet David-Schwartz, Beit Dagan, Israel
“Gadi pushed us to realize our potential through dedication and countless hours of critical discussions,” Dr. Menny Kirma, Jerusalem, Israel
“Gadi was a devoted advocate for women in science, and his mentorship helped cultivate many female principal investigators,” Prof. Ruthie Angelovici, Missouri, USA
"Gadi was my post-doctoral mentor; a brilliant scientist, generous and kind person and a man of integrity. His impact on science and people will live forever.” Dr. Sudhiranjan Gupta, Texas, USA
“Gadi was a brilliant and compassionate mentor whose guidance united lab members from around the world and fostered a true sense of family,” Dr. Daphna Miron, Israel
“Gadi used to say regarding research, that life is sub-optimal, that he is only an advisor, and that we lead the research,” Prof. Vered Tzin, Sede Boker, Israel
“When we discussed for hours the results of the latest analysis, Gadi always showed the curiosity of a child, but armed with encyclopedic knowledge.” Prof. Aaron Fait”, Sede Boker, Israel
“Gadi’s spirit and scientific legacy will continue to inspire us.” Prof Guiliang Tang, Michigan, USA
“He was the best mentor a young man can ask for; both in science and in life.” Dr. Noam Shani, Paphos, Cyprus
“Gadi would say: People will not remember what you said, but they will remember the impression you made.” Prof. Avi Levy, Rehovot, Israel
Selected Publications
Angelovici R, Fait A, Fernie AR, Galili G (2011) A seed high-lysine trait is negatively associated with the TCA cycle and slows down Arabidopsis seed germination. New Phytol 189 (1):148-159. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03478.x
Fait A, Angelovici R, Less H, Ohad I, Urbanczyk-Wochniak E, Fernie AR, Galili G (2006) Arabidopsis seed development and germination is associated with temporally distinct metabolic switches. Plant Physiol 142 (3):839-854. doi:10.1104/pp.106.086694
Galili G (1995) Regulation of Lysine and Threonine Synthesis. Plant Cell 7 (7):899-906. doi:10.1105/tpc.7.7.899
Galili G, Amir R, Fernie AR (2016) The Regulation of Essential Amino Acid Synthesis and Accumulation in Plants. Annu Rev Plant Biol 67:153-178. doi:10.1146/annurev-arplant-043015-112213
Galili G, Levy AA, Feldman M (1986) Gene-Dosage Compensation of Endosperm Proteins in Hexaploid Wheat Triticum-Aestivum. P Natl Acad Sci USA 83 (17):6524-6528
Honig A, Avin-Wittenberg T, Ufaz S, Galili G (2012) A new type of compartment, defined by plant-specific Atg8-interacting proteins, is induced upon exposure of Arabidopsis plants to carbon starvation. Plant Cell 24 (1):288-303. doi:10.1105/tpc.111.093112
Michaeli S, Honig A, Levanony H, Peled-Zehavi H, Galili G (2014) Arabidopsis ATG8-INTERACTING PROTEIN1 is involved in autophagy-dependent vesicular trafficking of plastid proteins to the vacuole. Plant Cell 26 (10):4084-4101. doi:10.1105/tpc.114.129999
Tang G, Miron D, Zhu-Shimoni JX, Galili G (1997) Regulation of lysine catabolism through lysine-ketoglutarate reductase and saccharopine dehydrogenase in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell 9 (8):1305-1316. doi:10.1105/tpc.9.8.1305
Tzin V, Galili G (2010) New insights into the shikimate and aromatic amino acids biosynthesis pathways in plants. Mol Plant 3 (6):956-972. doi:10.1093/mp/ssq048
Xie Q, Tzfadia O, Levy M, Weithorn E, Peled-Zehavi H, Van Parys T, Van de Peer Y, Galili G (2016) hfAIM: A reliable bioinformatics approach for in silico genome-wide identification of autophagy-associated Atg8-interacting motifs in various organisms. Autophagy 12 (5):876-887. doi:10.1080/15548627.2016.1147668
Zhu X, Galili G (2003) Increased lysine synthesis coupled with a knockout of its catabolism synergistically boosts lysine content and also transregulates the metabolism of other amino acids in Arabidopsis seeds. Plant Cell 15 (4):845-853. doi:10.1105/tpc.009647
