LSI/Weizmann Scientific Partnership
The Life Sciences Institute at the University of Michigan and the Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) in Israel have formed a partnership to solve problems of human health through basic science research. The researchers believe the alliance can produce a great effect on battling disease areas, including diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.
"It's just a great way to expand our mission for collaboration," said Alan Saltiel, LSI director and research professor. "Both Institutes prize science at the highest levels, and appreciate the value of scientists who care deeply about collaboration."
"This collaboration will strengthen the links between our institutions and will foster research in scientific areas yet to be explored," said Yehiel Zick of WIS.
The first joint symposium of the new partnership was held in Israel in October 2004.
Investigators from both Institutes are encouraged to seek funds from the program to support travel and other expenses for visiting scholars to explore collaborative opportunities at the two institutions. The prospects for scientific exchange, recruitment of students and fellows, as well as collaborative projects will greatly benefit both institutions.
The Weizmann Institute of Science, located in Rehovot, Israel, is one of the top-ranking multidisciplinary research institutions in the world. Noted for its wide-ranging exploration of the sciences and technology, the Institute gathers together 2,500 scientists, technicians and research students devoted to adventuring into the unknown. In their labs, located in a landscaped campus environment, they share a vision: To better understand nature and our place within it. The Institute comprises 18 departments organized into five faculties--Biology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematical Sciences, as well as the Feinberg Graduate School, which has responsibility for a Science Teaching Department and a Youth Activities Section. The Institute has also established a series of interdisciplinary research centers to promote the wide-ranging collaboration characteristic of today's frontier field.
The Life Sciences Institute in Ann Arbor is a new scientific enterprise at the University of Michigan. Formed in 2001 with a generous endowment from the University, the Institute is housed in a new six-story, 230,000 square foot open design laboratory facility located in the center of Michigan's Ann Arbor campus. Understanding that progress in the prevention and treatment of major diseases will require the collective insights of researchers from various disciplines, the LSI is intended as a hub for collaboration among outstanding scientists focusing together on biological problems of importance. The Institute seeks to harness the strength and tradition of academic excellence at the University of Michigan by forging links between the health sciences, basic sciences, engineering, the social sciences and the humanities. Blending diverse skills and approaches between wise veterans and energetic junior researchers, will develop synergies that yield profound insights into the complexity of life that lies between the genome and the organism. Areas of focus include molecular and cellular biology, genetics, genomics and proteomics, and structural, computational and chemical biology.
