Prof. Ruth Arnon, Ph.D – Head of Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Ruth Arnon is the inventor of the new synthetic influenza vaccine and head of BiondVax's Scientific Advisory Board. Formerly Vice-President of the Weizmann Institute of Science (1988-1997), Professor Arnon is an internationally acclaimed immunologist. Along with Prof. Michael Sela, she conceptualized and developed Copaxone®, a drug for the treatment of multiple sclerosis which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is presently marketed worldwide.
Prior to her appointment as Vice-President, Prof. Arnon served as Head of the Department of Chemical Immunology and as Dean of the Faculty of Biology. From 1985 to 1994, Prof. Arnon was Director of the Institute's McArthur Center for Molecular Biology of Tropical Diseases. Prof. Arnon has made significant contributions in the fields of vaccine development, cancer research and to the study of parasitic diseases.
She has served as President of the European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS), and as Secretary-General of the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). Dr. Arnon is the recipient of numerous international and Israeli awards including the prestigious Israel Prize. Prof. Arnon is also the Advisor for Science to the President of Israel and a member of the Israel Academy of Sciences, where she presently chairs its Science Division. Prof. Arnon is the incumbent of the Paul Ehrlich Chair in Immunochemistry at the Weizmann Institute.
Prof. Ethan Rubinstein, M.D., LL.b.
Professor Ethan Rubinstein, Professor of Medicine of the University of Manitoba, Canada, previosuly at the Tel Aviv University School of Medicine, is a well-known expert in the area of infectious diseases. Prof. Rubinstein served as the Head of The Infectious Diseases Unit, at the Sheba Medical Center, Tel Aviv University School of Medicine from 1974 to 2002. Since 2004, Prof. Rubinstein has been the Sellers Professor of Research and Head of the Section of Infectious Diseases at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB. Canada. He is a Graduate of Medicine from the Universities of Basel, Switzerland and John Hopkins, United States, and holds a degree in Law from Tel Aviv University.
From 1996 to 1998, Prof. Rubinstein was the President of the International Society of Endocarditis and Endovascular Infections, and he also served as the Secretary General of the International Society for Chemotherapy. Prof. Rubinstein is the Head of the Guideline Committee of the Canadian Association for Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Prof. Rubinstein has published over 350 scientific articles, textbook chapters and monographs.
Prof. Michel Revel, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor Michel Revel, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the Weizmann Institute of Science is well known for his contributions to the field of immunology. Prof. Revel’s research on Interferon, its mechanisms of action and the isolation of the human Interferon-beta gene, have led to the biotechnological development of Interferon-beta and its application in medicine. Revel also discovered the human gene for the cytokine Interleukin-6 which was developed at his laboratory and at InterPharm-Serono based on its activity for protecting nerve cells and the nerve myelin coating.
Alongside his research and development activity, Revel is deeply involved in the ethics of science and biotechnology, and serves as chairman of the Bioethics Advisory Committee of the Israel Academy of Sciences and as a member of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO. He integrates his work in science with traditional Judaism and Jewish philosophy in addressing bioethical issues such as use of human Embryo Stem cells, genetic intervention in man and cloning.
Prof. Revel was the recipient of the Israel Prize for medical research and the Michael Landau Prize for biotechnology. Since its establishment, he has been a member of Israel's National Committee for Biotechnology, serving for three years as its chairman.
