248 research outputs found
Foreign workers in Israel: Global perspectives
No full textExplores how the entry of migrant workers into Israel raises questions beyond just those of the labor market. Explores how the entry of migrant workers into Israel raises questions beyond just those of the labor market. In this account of a social experiment gone awry, Israel Drori exposes a little-known and recent phenomenon: the importation of foreign workers from Third World economies to Israel. Focusing on Romanian, Thai, and Filipina migrants brought to Israel for specified periods of employment, Drori examines the effect of migrants on Israeli society, particularly the issue of national identity. What began as a political corrective-avoiding the danger of hiring Palestinians to do work that Jewish Israelis would not-has developed into a social and economic problem the state does not know how to handle. In addition to examining the work experiences and social lives of these workers, Drori also situates the Israeli case within a global context, where many affluent nations have significant populations of marginalized, undocumented workers. Israel Drori is Professor at the School of Business Administration, College of Management, Israel, and also teaches at the Department of Public Policy at Tel Aviv University. He is the author of The Seam Line: Arab Workers and Jewish Managers in the Israeli Textile Industry and coauthor (with Izhak Schnell and Michael Sofer) of Arab Industrialization in Israel: Ethnic Entrepreneurship in the Periphery
The Selective in vitro Cytotoxicity of Spirulina-Derived Nanoparticles: A Novel Biomimetic Approach to Cancer Therapy
No full textEliyahu Drori, Valeria Rahamim, Dhaval Patel, Yamm Anker, Sivan Meir, Gal Uzan, Chen Drori, Yaakov Anker, Aharon Azagury Department of Chemical Engineering, Ariel University, Ariel, IsraelCorrespondence: Aharon Azagury, Email [email protected]: Cancer treatment often involves significant side effects, necessitating the need for more selective therapies. Spirulina-derived nanoparticles (sNPs) have shown promise as a targeted anticancer strategy.Methods: This study evaluated the cytotoxic effects of sNPs on cancer cell lines TR-146 (buccal), Caco-2 and HT-29 (colorectal), and MCF-7 (breast), compared to the non-cancerous MCF-10A cells. Cytotoxicity was assessed using the XTT assay at concentrations of 25– 500 mg/mL over 3– 48 hours. Cellular uptake was quantified via fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) and fluorescence microscopy, and endocytic inhibitors were used to investigate the uptake mechanism.Results: sNPs induced 30– 80% mortality in cancer cells, while non-cancerous MCF-10A cells exhibited negligible mortality (< 5%). Male-derived Caco-2 cells were more sensitive to sNPs than female-derived HT-29 cells, suggesting potential sex-based differences. FACS analysis showed 100% cellular uptake in all cancer cells, with TR-146 exhibiting the highest fluorescence intensity. Endocytosis inhibition studies revealed that caveolae-mediated endocytosis played a significant role in sNP uptake, particularly in TR-146 and Caco-2 cells.Discussion: These findings demonstrate the potential of sNPs as selective and potent anticancer agents, warranting further research to optimize their clinical application. Keywords: Spirulina, nanoparticles, cancer therapy, biomimetics, cellular uptake, endocytic inhibitor
Forest and trees, institutional dynamics and artifacts : on visual organizational indicators of global and historical cultural patterns
No full textAmpelographic and genetic characterization of the Israeli grapevine germplasm collection
No full textThe collection and initial characterization of Israel's native grapevine population
No full textThe holy land has a long history of winemaking, widelly mentioned in ancient scripts. The Muslim occupation of this region in the 7th century started a long period of wine consumption prohibition, resulting in the eventual loss of local wine varieties. Thus, the renewing Israeli wine industry is based solely on international varieties. In the last three years we are collecting and assessing for the first time a wide Israeli grapevine germplasm collection. Our efforts are in two directions: Collection of local cultivated varieties, and adding new ones by a wide survey done all over Israel. We collect both Sylvestris and Sativa populations. Most importantly, we strive to identify varieties suited for quality wine production. A collection vineyard is being planted with 6 plants per unique accession. By now we collected 270 accessions. 148 accessions were analyzed by 10 SSR loci, and we found 61 unique profiles which were analyzed against European databases. Out of these, 10 were identical to Israeli and Palestinian accessions. To understand the relation in this group and to other collections, we conducted an initial population analysis. The analysis reviled two main groups, one of 35 accessions, mostly V.v. ssp. Sativa, and a second of 15 accessions, all V.v. ssp. Sylvestris. In addition, Primary and secondary descriptors, Phenophase description, and some eno-carpological traits were obtained for most of the accession, resulting in the identification of at least 3 white and 3 red Sativa varieties suited for quality wine production.
The wilds in Israel contain wide populations of both V.v. ssp. Sativa and Sylvestris. We believe that by collecting and assessing these populations, an array of new-old varieties would be presented, starting a new era in the Israeli wine industr
Micro-thermography for imaging ice crystal growth and nucleation inside non-transparent materials
No full textIce crystal growth and nucleation rate measurements are usually done using light microscopy in liquid and transparent samples. Yet, the understanding of important practical problems depends on monitoring ice growth inside solid materials, for example how rapid ice growth leads to structural damage of food, or how the final structure of cementitious materials is affected by ice during curing. Imaging crystal growth inside solid materials cannot be done with visible light and is intrinsically more challenging than visible light imaging. Thermography is a technique that uses thermal (infrared) cameras to monitor temperature changes in a material, and it has been used to provide a qualitative description of ice propagation with a low spatial resolution. Here, we describe a method that uses a novel micro-thermography system to image ice nucleation and growth inside non-transparent samples. This method relies on two major components: a cold stage with accurate temperature control (±0.001 °C) and a thermal camera with high spatial and temperature resolution. Our experiments include imaging of ice formation and growth in pure water first and then inside plant leaves used as a model for a non-transparent material. An ice growth rate of 2.2 mm/s was measured inside a plant leaf at −12 °C, and ice nucleation in single plant cells was observed as a hotspot having a diameter of 160 µm. The results presented here provide an experimental proof that high-quality imaging of ice growth is achievable, thus paving the way for quantitative measurements of ice growth kinetics and ice nucleation in solid materials.Fil: Zalazar, Martin. Yeshiva University; Estados Unidos. Ministerio de Ciencia. Tecnología e Innovación Productiva. Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Bioingeniería y Bioinformática - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Bioingeniería y Bioinformática; ArgentinaFil: Zypman, Fredy. Yeshiva University; Estados UnidosFil: Drori, Ran. Yeshiva University; Estados Unido
Ampelographic and genetic characterization of an initial Israeli grapevine germplasm collection
No full textThe Holy Land has a long history of winemaking, widely mentioned in ancient scripts. The Muslim occupation of this region, starting in the 7th century initiated a wine consumption prohibition, resulting in the abandonment of most wine varieties. The renewing of Israeli wine industry in the 19th century was based on international cultivars. Between the years 2011-2014 we conducted a country-wide survey towards the collection and assessment of an Israeli grapevine germplasm collection, including for the first time Vitis vinifera L. subsp. sylvestris (Gmelin) Hegi accessions. The collected population consists of 148 accessions which revealed 61 different genetic profiles when analysed at 9 SSR loci. Ten genotypes consistently matched the profiles of some Israeli and Palestinian accessions reported in previous studies. The phylogenetic analysis showed how the V. vinifera subsp. sylvestris accessions, all collected in the north of Israel around water sources, are well distinguished from the V. vinifera subsp. sativa group. Based on ampelographic evaluation we concluded that most V. vinifera L. subsp. sativa accessions have characteristics of the proles Orientalis.
We believe that by our efforts of collecting and assessing these populations, an array of new-old grapevine varieties suited for quality wine production would be offered, reconnecting the Israeli wine industry to its historical origin
Repeated E-book Reading and Its Contribution to Learning New Words among Kindergartners
No full textThe contribution of repeated e-book reading with and without word explanation support and its effect on receptive and expressive word learning among preschoolers was examined. Seventy-eight kindergartners were randomly divided into an experimental and a control group. The experimental group received two individual reading sessions of an e-book with a dictionary that provided word explanations. The children clicked on hotspots which provided the explanation two more times. The children thus heard the meaning of the word three times in each session, with a total of six times. Not all difficult words received a dictionary explanation. The control group received the regular kindergarten program. The children's receptive word learning, word explanation and production of focal words were tested pre and post intervention. An improvement in all dependent measures was found post-intervention, compared to the control group. The dictionary in the e-book supported not only receptive word learning, but also word explanation. Words that received a dictionary explanation supported word learning better than words which were not included in the dictionary. Furthermore, receiving support six times was more effective than three times. Educational implications are discussed
Collection and characterization of grapevine genetic resources (Vitis vinifera) in the Holy Land, towards the renewal of ancient winemaking practices
No full textThe importance and extent of wine consumption in all life aspects at the Holy Land is well documented. The Muslim influence in this region led to the abandonment of winemaking practices, and possible loss of indigenous wine varieties. Here we present a country wide collection of the local grapevine population including wild and cultivated forms, and its characterization by genetic, ampelographic and enological methods. The ampelographic analysis shows clear differences between Sativa and Sylvestris groups in flower, leaf and cluster parameters, and that most Sativa belong to proles orientalis. Genetic population analysis was conducted by analyzing 22 common SSR markers, determining first the unique genotypes, and internally assessing the population’s structure, showing the existence of two distinct Sativa and Sylvestris populations, and a third mixed one. Likewise, the relationship between the Israeli grapevine population and grapevine populations in Europe and parts of Asia was investigated, showing that the Israeli Sativa and Sylvestris populations cluster closely together, suggesting a common genetic source. Lastly, the enological characteristics of selected Sativa and Sylvestris genotypes are presented, demonstrating their potential for quality wine production. This research significantly contributes toward the re-establishment of indigenous and traditional local grapevine varieties into the modern international wine industry
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