Alon Chen
Alon Chen
Principal investigator
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Alon is the President of the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel (since December 2019) and the former Managing Director of the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Germany. Alon did his PhD at the Weizmann Institute and his postdoctoral studies at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, California, US. Alon’s research and scientific interest focuses on the neurobiology of stress, particularly the mechanisms by which the brain is regulating the response to stressful challenges and how this response is linked to psychiatric disorders.
Adi Azulay
Adi Azulay
Lab manager
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Adi obtained her MSc in Molecular Biology from Ben-Gurion University. She is in charge of the day-to-day maintenance and management of the WIS lab.
 
Asaf Benjamin
Complex Behavior
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Asaf Benjamin
PhD student
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Asaf uses methods from machine learning, data science and AI to study the neural underpinnings of complex social behavior and stress-related psychiatric disorders. He completed his BSc in computer science and philosophy, and his MSc in neuroscience, jointly with Prof. Ofer Yizhar.
Carlo De Donno
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Carlo De Donno
PhD student
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Carlo is a neural engineer investigating the neurobiological mechanisms of stress using machine learning and deep learning methods on single-cell transcriptomics data.
Elena Brivio
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Elena Brivio
Postdoctoral fellow
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Elena joined the lab in September 2017 for her PhD. She is a biotechnologist interested in how gender influences stress response and related neuropsychopathologies.
 
 
 
Erez Romi
Gene X Stress Interaction: Epigenetic Mechanisms
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Erez Romi
Postdoctoral fellow
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Erez is a molecular neurobiologist investigating the role of alternative polyadenylation in the regulation of stress. He is also interested in identification of organ-specific signaling molecules that are secreted during the stress response.
 
Fabian Stamp
Gene X Stress Interaction: Epigenetic Mechanisms
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Fabian Stamp
Postdoctoral fellow
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Fabian is a neuroscientist investigating the involvement of RNA-modifications in regulating the central stress response in health and stress-related psychopathology.
 
 
Keren Shoshani-Haye
Complex Behavior
Early Life Stress
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Keren Shoshani-Haye
PhD student
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Keren is a neuroscientist interested in the epigenetic mechanisms mediating the effects of early life stress on behavior and stress resiliency.
 
Linor Bengal
Complex Behavior
Gene X Stress Interaction: Epigenetic Mechanisms
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Linor Bengal
MSc student
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Linor is a neuroscientist interested in the molecular and cellular effects of PTSD.
Maya Amitai
Gene X Stress Interaction: Epigenetic Mechanisms
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Maya Amitai
Consultant
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Maya is a psychiatrist (adults, children and adolescents) working at Schneider Hospital, interested in epigenetic mechanisms involved in response to SSRI treatment in children and adolescents
 
Maya Lebow
Gene X Stress Interaction: Epigenetic Mechanisms
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Maya Lebow
Consultant
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Maya obtained her PhD at the Weizmann Institute. She is a neuroscientist interested in biomarkers in post-traumtic stress disorder and other psychopathologies. She also really likes the BNST.
Noa Eren
Complex Behavior
Metabolism and Eating Disorders
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Noa Eren
Postdoctoral fellow
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Noa is a neurobiologist interested in the mechanisms underlying social behaviors and disorders of sociability.
 
 
Tommaso Biagini
Complex Behavior
Metabolism and Eating Disorders
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Stress Linked Psychopathologies
Tommaso Biagini
PhD student
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Tommaso is a neuroscientist who is deeply interested in improving the understanding of psychiatric disorders like PTSD, ADHD and mood disorders. He is also very interested in the use of psychedelic drugs as a treatment for several mental pathologies.
 
Yair Ben-Efraim
Complex Behavior
Early Life Stress
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Yair Ben-Efraim
Postdoctoral fellow
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Yair received his PhD at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. He uses systems neuroscience approaches to dissect behavioral roles of the CRF system, and the role of early postnatal experience in priming adulthood stress responses.
Yair Shemesh
Complex Behavior
Stress Circuitry and Regulation
Yair Shemesh
Staff scientist
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Yair obtained his PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a neurobiologist interested in the mechanisms underlying complex behaviors in mice and their translational value to psychiatric disorders in humans.
 

Former Lab Members

Adi Neufeld-Cohen
PhD
Orna Issler
PhD
Ifat Musseri
MSc
Marloes Henckens
Postdoctoral fellow
Dmitriy Getselter
Research assistant
Yael Kuperman
PhD
Eran Gershon
PhD
Dana Galili
MSc
Sharon (Haramati) Rodrig
PhD
Dorin Holzman-Karniel
MSc
Chen Eitan
MSc
Evan Elliott
PhD
Eli Ezrielev
MSc
Amichai Hareven
MD internship
Diana Rashkovan
MSc
Yona Greenman
Visiting scientist
Limor Regev
PhD
Hezi Szteinberg
PhD
Inbal Navon
MSc
Michael Tsoory
PhD
Uri Shamgar
MSc
Yonat Drori
PhD
Tamar Polacheck
MSc
Katy Staikin
MSc
Mariana Schroeder
Postdoctoral fellow
Meira Weiss
MSc
Naama Volk
PhD
Shosh Gil
Lab manager
Jakob Biran
Postdoctoral fellow
Orit Furman
Postdoctoral fellow
Elaine Adler
Postdoctoral fellow
Alon Richter Levin
MSc
Nofar Amrosi
Research assistant
Assaf Ramot
PhD
Gili Ezra
PhD
Stella Koutsouli
MSc
Maayan Tahor
PhD
Tali Nahum
MSc
Carine Dournes
PhD
Tamar Shlapoberksy
PhD
Michaela Filiou
Postdoctoral fellow
Oren Forkosh
Postdoctoral fellow
Mareen Engel
Hagar Naim
Lab manager
Markus Nussbaumer
Technician
Batya Bejar
MSc
Sabine Rannio
MSc
Evan Paul
Postdoctoral fellow
Jamie Rashty
Visiting MD Student
Alec Dick
Postdoctoral fellow
Gal Sela
MSc
Julia Ruat
PhD
Aron Kos
Postdoctoral fellow
Franck Touboul
Software engineer
Daniela Harbich
Lab manager
Claudia Kühne
Lab manager
Rosa Eva Hüttl
Staff scientist
Cornelia Flachskamm
Technician
Rainer Stoffel
Technician
Bianca Schmid
Technician
Andrea Parl
Technician
Andrea Ressle
Technician
Lisa Rudolph
Technician
Maria Holzapfel
Technician
Heike Junkert
Personal assistant
Sergey Anpilov
PhD
Juan Pablo Lopez
Postdoctoral fellow
Stoyo Karamihalev
PhD
Suellen Almeida-Correa
Postdoctoral fellow
Julien Dine
Staff scientist
Weizmann Institute Branch
Arison Neurobiology Building
Room 312, 7610001
Rehovot, Israel
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T | +972 (0) 8-934-4490
F | +972 (0) 8-934-4131
Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry Branch
Kraepelinstr.
2-10, 80804.
München, Germany
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T | +49 (0) -89-30622-586