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CRACKING CANCER ANEUPLOIDY

Our lab focuses on a unique, understudied trait of cancer. Changes in the chromosomal composition of the cell, also known as aneuploidy, make for a fundamental difference between normal and cancer cells. We combine experimental and computational approaches to uncover the basic biology underlying this hallmark of cancer, track its origins and understand its cellular consequences. By doing so, we strive to expand our understanding of the genetic basis of cancer, and to make aneuploidy a therapeutic target for precision cancer medicine.

OUR RESEARCH INTERESTS

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CANCER ANEUPLOIDY

Aneuploidy – the presence of an abnormal number of chromosomes in cancer cells — is characteristic of most tumors, and is rarely observed in normal tissues. It is not fully understood how aneuploidy contributes to tumor formation and progression. Moreover, there are currently no therapeutics that target this hallmark of cancer to  eliminate tumors. We apply a variety of genomic and functional approaches to studying this phenomenon.

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EVOLUTION OF CANCER MODELS

The study of the complex genetics of human cancer depends on reliable cancer model systems. However, these models reflect the biology of actual human tumors only to a certain extent, and they evolve in ways that pose both risks and opportunities for cancer research. We study the genomic stability and evolution of cancer model systems, in order to improve their use in basic research, with an emphasis on aneuploidy research.

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STEM CELLS & CANCER

Human stem cells share fundamental characteristics with human cancer cells, and thus make for a unique model system for the study of cancer genetics. We use human stem cells as a tool for aneuploidy research, taking advantage of their inherent chromosomal instability and of their amenability to genome editing.  We also use human stem cells as a tool for the identification of cancer vulnerabilities.

OUR BIG QUESTIONS

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WHAT DRIVES ANEUPLOIDY IN CANCER? HOW DOES ANEUPLOIDY CONTRIBUTE TO THE INITIATION AND PROGRESSION OF TUMORS?

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WHAT CELLULAR VULNERABILITIES ARE INDUCED BY ANEUPLOIDY? HOW CAN ANEUPLOIDY BE EXPLOITED TO KILL CANCER CELLS?

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WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF GENOMIC EVOLUTION FOR CANCER MODELING? HOW CAN CANCER MODEL SYSTEMS BE IMPROVED?

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LAB NEWS

Our new Review on "Aneuploidy as a driver of human cancer" is out in Nature Genetics!

October 2, 2024

Check out our two Research Articles published today at Nature Communications and Cancer Discovery! Fun and fruitful collaborations with the Santaguida lab @IEO!

September 9, 2024

Congratulations to Rachel for being awarded the Weinstat Award for outstanding students!

September 5, 2024

The Ben-David lab has been awarded the U.S.-Israel BSF Project Grant together with the Sheltzer lab at Yale!

August 10, 2024

Congratulations to Guy for her wedding!!

June 18, 2024

Congratulations to Uri for being elected to the Israel Young Academy!

May 21, 2024

Welcome to the lab, Amit and Arianna!

May 6, 2024

Check out our new paper @Genome Biology. A close collaboration w/ the Yeger-Lotem lab. Congrats, Rachel & Juman!

March 28, 2024

Uri has become a full member of the Safra Center for Bioinformatics @TAU. Congrats!

March 28, 2024

Check out Uri's interview (in Hebrew) for the "Sounds like cancer" podcast.

February 26, 2024

Welcome to the lab, Ofir!

January 1, 2024

3 new preprints on bioRxiv, all in close collaboration with fantastic colleagues:
* https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.12.16.571980
* https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.12.20.572490
* https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.12.21.572559
Check them out!

December 24, 2023

WELCOME TO THE LAB, SHLOMIT AND GUY!

November 1, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO ERAN FOR BEING AWARDED THE GELMAN CANCER RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP FOR OUTSTANDING PHD STUDENTS!

September 5, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOHANNA FOR WINNING THE WEINSTAT GRADUATE AWARD IN CANCER RESEARCH!

August 21, 2023

THE BEN-DAVID LAB HAS BEEN AWARDED THE ICRF PROJECT GRANT (2023-2026)!

Jun 22, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO TAL FOR WINNING THE BEST POSRER AWARD (3RD PLACE) AT THE TAU BIOINFORMATICS RETREAT!

June 7, 2023

A SHORT PIECE ON THE LAB AT N12 NEWS -- CHECK IT OUT!

May 26, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO URI FOR BEING AWARDED THE 2023 KADAR AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH! CHECK OUT THIS MOVIE ABOUT THE WORK OF OUR LAB.

May 19, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO URI FOR THE TENURE AND PROMOTION TO ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR!

May 14, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOHANNA FOR WINNING THE BEST FLASH TALK AWARD (2ND PLACE) AND THE BEST POSTER AWARD (3RD PLACE) IN THE CBRC BIENNIAL MEETING!

May 12, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO URI FOR BEING AWARDED THE RECTOR'S AWARD FOR INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY IN TEACHING

March 23, 2023

3 NEW PREPRINTS WITH JOHANNA AS CO-FIRST AUTHOR. CHECK THEM OUT IN THE PUBLICATIONS SECTION.

April 12, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOHANNA FOR BEING AWARDED THE 2023 PFIZER-WEXLER PHD SCHOLARSHIP!

February 28, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO LINOY FOR WINNING A BEST FLASH TALK AWARD AT THE ILANIT 2023 CONFERENCE!

February 23, 2023

CHECK OUT THIS APERIO MAGAZINE ARTICLE DESCRIBING THE RESEARCH OF OUR LAB!

February 15, 2023

NEW GRANTS AWARDED TO THE LAB:(1) THE ISRAELI CANCER ASSOCIATION (ICA) RESEARCH GRANT(2) EMBO YOUNG INVESTIGATOR SMALL RESEARCH GRANT

January, 2023

CONGRATULATIONS TO HAJIME FOR BEING AWARDED BOTH THE JSPS OVERSEAS RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP AND THE UEHARA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP!

December 01, 2022

CONGRATULATIONS TO YAEL FOR BEING AWARDED THE FACULTY OF MEDICINE "EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH" AWARD!

September 16, 2022

OUR COLLABORATIVE STUDY WITH THE BARZEL AND MADI LAB JUST PUBLISHED IN NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY -- FIND IT HERE AND READ ABOUT IT IN 'HAARETZ'!

June 30, 2022

WELCOME TO HAJIME, WHO IS JOINING THE LAB AS A POSTDOC!

June 20, 2022

April 1, 2022

WELCOME TO RACHEL, WHO HAS JOINED THE LAB AS AN M.SC. STUDENT

February 20, 2022

MICHAL'S PAPER ACCEPTED TO NPJ PRECISION ONCOLOGY, AND HER RELATED AVODAT GMAR GOT THE GRADE 100 (!) -- CONGRATULATIONS!

February 15, 2022

December 14, 2021

URI WAS SELECTED AS AN EMBO YOUNG INVESTIGATOR. READ ABOUT IT HERE AND HERE. CONGRATULATIONS!

December 6, 2021

THE BEN-DAVID LAB HAS BEEN AWARDED THE FORBECK ACCELERATOR GRANT

November 1, 2021

THE BEN-DAVID LAB HAS BEEN AWARDED THE ISRAEL PRECISION MEDICINE PARTNERSHIP (IPMP) RESEARCH GRANT, IN COLLABORATION WITH PROF. ITTHAI BEN-PORATH AND DR. AMIR SONNENBLICK.

October 7, 2021

WELCOME TO NIR, WHO HAS JUST JOINED THE LAB AS A POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW!

October 3, 2021

OUR NEW PREPRINT IS OUT. IN COLLABORATION WITH THE BARZEL AND MADI LABS, WE DISCOVERED A SURPRISINGLY HIGH PREVALENCE OF ANEUPLOIDY IN HUMAN T CELLS EDITED BY A CLINICAL CRISPR PROTOCOL. CHECK IT OUT HERE.

August 21, 2021

WE'RE HAPPY TO WELCOME TO THE LAB ANOUK  SAVIR-KADMON AND TAL BEN-YISHAY AS SUMMER INTERNS!

August 1, 2021

THE ISF HAS AWARDED THE BEN-DAVID LAB THE ISF RESEARCH GRANT AND THE ISF NEW FACULTY EQUIPMENT GRANT!

July 27, 2021

WELCOME TO THE LAB, YONATAN AND LINOY!

June 27, 2021

NEW GRANTS AWARDED TO THE LAB:* THE FORBECK FOUNDATION COVID RECOVERY GRANT* THE SCHREIBER FOUNDATION RESEARCH GRANT* THE SHTACHER AWARD

February 25, 2021

OUR NEW STUDY ON ANEUPLOIDY-INDUCED VULNERABILITIES JUST PUBLISHED IN NATURE! YOU CAN READ IT HERE.

January 27, 2021

OUR NEW PREPRINT ON THE GENOMIC EVOLUTION OF PDXS IS OUT -- READ IT HERE.

January 18, 2021

CHECK OUT DR. BEN-DAVID'S POPULAR SCIENCE TALK AT THE ICRF WEBINAR SERIES

January 14, 2021

OUR PAPER ON "ANEUPLOIDY-INDUCED CANCER VULNERABILITY TO MITOTIC CHECKPOINT INHIBITION" HAS BEEN ACCEPTED TO NATURE! CONGRATS!

Nov 19, 2020

CONGRATS TO MICHAL AND TO KAVYA, FOR SHARING THE SECOND PRIZE OF THE "BEST POSTER AWARD" OF THE SAFRA BIOINFORMATICS RETREAT!

Nov 4, 2020

CONGRATULATIONS TO TOM AND TO GIL, FOR OFFICIALLY STARTING THEIR PHD PROGRAM!

Oct 1, 2020

THE BEN-DAVID LAB IS AWARDED THE ERC STARTING GRANT! SEE HERE FOR THE PRESS RELEASE.

September 03, 2020

DR. BEN-DAVID IS AWARDED THE ICRF GESHER AWARD!

August 21, 2020

DR. BEN-DAVID (TAU) AND DR. AMON (MIT) ARE AWARDED A JOINT BSF RESEARCH GRANT!

July 26, 2020

OUR CAS9/P53 ARTICLE IS FEATURED ON THE COVER OF NATURE GENETICS THIS MONTH! CHECK IT OUT HERE.

July 7, 2020

THE BEN-DAVID LAB IS AWARDED THE DOD CANCER RESEARCH PROGRAM CAREER DEVELOPMENT AWARD!

June 22, 2020

DR. BEN-DAVID IS AWARDED THE 2020 'NEXT GEN STAR' AWARD OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR CANCER RESEARCH (AACR)

March 1, 2020

WATCH DR. BEN-DAVID'S TALK AT:WORLD CANCER DAY, 2020

February 3, 2020

RESEARCH FUNDING

ADDRESS

Faculty of Medicine, Room 728
Tel Aviv University
P.O.B 39040
Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv 69978

CONTACT


ubendavid@tauex.tau.ac.il

+972-(0)73-3804730

+972-(0)54-6004444

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