Israel-British Partnership to Boost Groundbreaking Research on Aging

A collaboration between Israel and the United Kingdom will enhance research on aging and promote common projects related to aging, another outcome of the Britain-Israel Research and Academic Exchange (BIRAX) partnership.

As part of this collaboration, Tel Aviv University held a hybrid conference last week on the multidisciplinary aspects of aging research, including molecular aging, social aging, age-dependent diseases and interventions, and life quality.

The conference constitutes a joint initiative of BIRAX, Tel Aviv University, the British Council in Israel and the UK Embassy.

In addition, as part of the conference, a new NIS 7 million (£1.6 million) grant program was launched for funding collaborations between Israeli and British researchers in the field of aging research.

BIRAX, launched 10 years ago, is a bilateral research initiative that focuses on developments in regenerative medicine to fight diseases such as diabetes, Alzheimer’s and heart conditions.

Prof. Karen Avraham, Vice Dean for Pre-Clinical Affairs of the Sackler Faculty of Medicine and the Chair of the conference from TAU, stated that “in a world in which our lifespan is getting longer and longer, we shall make sure that life quality will be conserved also in old age.”

British Ambassador to Israel Neil Wigan said that “scientific collaboration between the UK and Israel is one of our most important fields, and we are working to expand it dramatically in the future.”

“It’s always exciting to see the groundbreaking research proposals coming out of BIRAX – in aging research and other academic areas – that have real potential to impact the future of us all,” he added.