This month we had the honor of hosting the ninth (!) Biotechnology Olympics at the faculty. The event, held in collaboration with the supervision of the biotechnology track at the Ministry of Education, was a celebration of science and academia. Students from biotechnology tracks in seven high schools from across the country filled the auditorium with infectious and moving enthusiasm as they presented the research topics they had submitted to the competition.
After opening remarks by the event organizers and the Vice Dean for Undergraduate Studies, Assoc. Prof. Maya Davidovich-Pinchas, the contestants presented the projects they had been working on. While the judges deliberated, PhD student Eden Freundlich from Assoc. Prof. Boaz Mizrahi’s lab gave a talk about microneedles, and Amit Winkler – an alumna and winner of the Olympics held four years ago, now a first-year student at the faculty – shared her experiences and spoke about coming full circle.
Finally, the winners were announced:
First place was awarded to Yitzhak Juan, a 12th-grade student from Amal B High School in Petah Tikva, who studied the effect of treatment with lithocholic acid on various characteristics of breast cancer cell lines.
Second place went to Noa Barko from Ulpanat Horev in Jerusalem, who investigated the activity of biosensors under the influence of different lavender-scented fabric softeners.
Third place was awarded to Eran Shoham from Ironi Makif A in Be’er Sheva, whose research examined the effect of sodium propionate, a product of the microbiome, on different types of breast cancer.
Also reaching the final were Stav Barkolin from Makif H in Ashdod and Michal Aminov from Ort Lilienthal in Ramla.
Many thanks to Sisi Kramerman, the Olympics coordinator; Tamar Peretz-Menachmov, the national supervisor of the track; and Prof. Ayelet Fishman and Assoc. Prof. Omer Yehezkelly, who partnered in organizing the Olympics on behalf of the faculty.
See you next year at the tenth Olympics!
