Ruth Arnon (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

: רות ארנון �ut aʁ'non born in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...

on June 1, 1933) is an Israeli biochemist and codeveloper of the multiple sclerosis drug

Copaxone Glatiramer acetate (also known as Copolymer 1, Cop-1), sold under the brand name Copaxone among others, is an immunomodulator medication used to treat multiple sclerosis. Glatiramer acetate is approved in the United States to reduce the frequency ...

. She is currently the Paul Ehrlich Professor of Immunology at the

Weizmann Institute of Science The Weizmann Institute of Science ( he, מכון ויצמן למדע ''Machon Vaitzman LeMada'') is a public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, 14 years before the State of Israel. It differs from other Israeli unive ...

, where she is researching anti-cancer and influenza vaccinations.

Biography

Ruth Rosenberg (later Arnon) was born in

, the youngest of three children. Her father, Alexander Rosenberg, moved with the family to Toulouse to pursue degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics. Upon their return to Israel, he worked for the

Israel Electric Corporation Israel Electric Corporation ( he, חברת החשמל לישראל, abbreviation: IEC) is the largest supplier of electrical power in Israel and the Palestinian territories. The IEC builds, maintains, and operates power generation stations, sub- ...

. Arnon says her interest in science was inspired by her father. She attended

Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium The Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium ( he, הַגִּימְנַסְיָה הָעִבְרִית הֶרְצְלִיָּה, ''HaGymnasia HaIvrit Herzliya'', Also known as ''Gymnasia Herzliya''), originally known as HaGymnasia HaIvrit (lit. Hebrew High Scho ...

and knew she wanted to be a medical researcher by the age of 15. She studied chemistry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem before joining the Israel Defense Forces's

Atuda Atuda, or Academic Atuda ( he, עתודה אקדמית, literally: Academic Reserve), is a program of the Israeli Defense Forces which enables high school graduates to defer the draft and attend university prior to their military service. After th ...

academic study program. Arnon earned her M.Sc. degree in 1955 and served for two years as an officer in the IDF. During her time in the military, she married Uriel Arnon, an engineer at the Technion in Haifa. They have two children: Michal (b. 1957) and Yoram (b. 1961).

Scientific career

Arnon joined the

in 1960. Upon joining the Institute Arnon began to work on her doctorate under Michael Sela. She has focused most of her life on the field of immunology. While at Weizmann, Arnon served as the Head of the Department of Chemical Immunology (1975-1978), as the Dean of the Faculty of Biology (1985-1988), Director of the MacArthur Center for Parasitology (1984-1994), Vice President for International Scientific Relations (1995-1997), and as Vice President of the institute (1988-1992). In addition, Professor Arnon served as the Director of the institute's MacArthur Center for Molecular Biology of Tropical Diseases from 1958 to 1994. Much of Arnon's work has been in the development of vaccinations and cancer research. One of her largest contributions to science was working alongside Professor Michael Sela to develop a drug for multiple sclerosis called

. The development of Copaxone began with their successful synthesis of the first synthetic antigen. They, along with Devorah Tietelbaum who was at the time a doctoral student, discovered that a material synthetically produced in the lab could suppress a disease found in animals that is a model for multiple sclerosis. After thirty years of research Copaxone was approved for medical use. Arnon served as the Chairperson of the Sciences division of the Israel Academy of Sciences from 1995 to 2001. She later was elected as President of the Israel Academy. She is also a member of the EMBO, the

European Molecular Biology Organization The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is a professional, non-profit organization of more than 1,800 life scientists. Its goal is to promote research in life science and enable international exchange between scientists. It co-funds cour ...

. Arnon served as Secretary-General of the International Union of Immunological Sciences, the President of the European Federation of Immunological Societies, and is also a member of the European Union Research Advisory Board. Arnon has published more than four hundred articles in biochemistry and immunology. She was a visiting professor at the Rockefeller Institute (New York), University of Washington (Seattle), University of California (Los Angeles), Pasteur Institute (Paris), Walter and Elise Hall Institute (Melbourne), Imperial Cancer Research Fund (London), and the Curie Institute (Paris).

Copaxone

Arnon and Sela developed a new drug application for the treatment of multiple sclerosis called Copolymer 1. Its chemical name is glatiramer acetate. It was submitted by the TEVA Pharmaceutical Company to the FDA for approval, under the name of

, on June 14, 1995. Since multiple sclerosis is an immunological disease, Cop 1 is an immunospecific drug, which is no surprise, as Arnon has focused the majority of her work in the field of immunology. It specifically aids neuroprotection and generation as well as prevents the demyelination of axons, a hallmark of diseases such as multiple sclerosis. In fact, studies by Arnon et al. have shown an increase in

myelination Myelin is a lipid-rich material that surrounds nerve cell axons (the nervous system's "wires") to insulate them and increase the rate at which electrical impulses (called action potentials) are passed along the axon. The myelinated axon can be ...

as a result of Cop 1. In a 2004 article, Arnon and Aharoni state that glatiramer acetate is "highly effective in the suppression of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in various species."

Current Research

Arnon is researching a universal, recombinant influenza vaccination, as well as a cancer vaccine. A 2009 paper discusses the use of

virus-like particle Virus-like particles (VLPs) are molecules that closely resemble viruses, but are non-infectious because they contain no viral genetic material. They can be naturally occurring or synthesized through the individual expression of viral structural pro ...

s (VLP) to induce an immune response. These particles cannot replicate, but possess the specific antigen-presenting proteins that immune cells use to identify viruses. Therefore, a vaccine could introduce VLPs to an individual's immune system and bring about the production of memory cells. Arnon and Ben-Yedidia hypothesize that these vaccines would be effective against

H5N1 Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 (A/H5N1) is a subtype of the influenza A virus which can cause illness in humans and many other animal species. A bird-adapted strain of H5N1, called HPAI A(H5N1) for highly pathogenic avian influenza virus of type ...

, a pandemic virus more commonly known as bird flu. They have tested the various synthetic vaccinations on mice and observed a significant immune response. In addition, they have put human lymphocytes in mice and also observed an immune response. Their research formed the basis of the company BiondVax, who have taken the universal flu vaccine into human clinical trials. In 2017 Arnon was appointed co-chair of the UK-Israel Science Council, alongside Prof. Lord Robert Winston. She has been a founding member of the council since 2010. Summary Ruth Rosenberg (later Arnon) was the youngest of three children born in Tel Aviv. Alexander Rosenberg, her father, travelled to Toulouse with his family to pursue degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics. He went to work for the Israel Electric Corporation after they returned to Israel. Her father, according to Arnon, sparked her interest in science. Arnon's work has mostly focused on the creation of vaccines and cancer studies. Working on the development of Copaxone, a medication for multiple sclerosis, with Professor Michael Sela was one of her most significant contributions to science. Copaxone's development began with the successful creation of the first synthetic antigen. They discovered that a substance synthesised in the lab might inhibit a condition observed in animals which is a paradigm for multiple sclerosis, along with Devorah Tietelbaum, who was a doctorate student at the time. Copaxone was licensed for medical use after thirty years of research. Copolymer 1 is a novel medication application created by Arnon and Sela for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Glatiramer acetate is its chemical name. On June 14, 1995, the TEVA Pharmaceutical Company submitted it to the FDA for approval under the name Copaxone. Cop 1 is an immunospecific medication, which makes sense given that multiple sclerosis is an immunological illness. Arnon has spent the majority of her career working in the field of immunology. It promotes neuroprotection and generation while also preventing axon demyelination, which is a characteristic of illnesses like multiple sclerosis. In fact, research by Arnon et al. have found that Cop 1 causes an increase in myelination. Currently, Arnon is working on a recombinant influenza vaccine that is universal as well as a cancer vaccine. The use of virus-like particles (VLP) to generate an immune response was discussed in a 2009 research. She has won 12 awards and recognitions in her career.

Awards and recognition

* 1979 -

Robert Koch Prize The Robert Koch Medal and Award are two prizes awarded annually by the German for excellence in the biomedical sciences. These awards grew out of early attempts by German physician Robert Koch to generate funding to support his research into the ...

in Medical Sciences, Germany * 1986 - Jimenez Diaz Award, Spain * 1990 - Elected Member of the

Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, based in Jerusalem, was established in 1961 by the State of Israel to foster contact between Israeli scholars in the sciences and humanities and create a think tank for advising the government on re ...

* 1991 - Hadassah Women of Distinction Award * 1994 - Chevalier de l'Ordre de la Légion d'Honneur, France * 1998 -

Wolf Prize in Medicine The Wolf Prize in Medicine is awarded annually by the Wolf Foundation in Israel. It is one of the six Wolf Prizes established by the Foundation and awarded since 1978; the others are in Agriculture, Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics and Arts. The ...

for the development of Cop1, or

* 1998 - Rothschild Prize in Life Sciences * 2001 - Israel Prize in medicine * 2009 - Elected member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

* 2010 - First female president of the

* 2020 - OurCrowd Maimonides Award for Lifetime Achievement in Science, Leadership and Menschlichkeit * 2021 - Honorary Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE)

References

External links

Homepage at the Weizmann Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnon, Ruth 1933 births Living people Israeli biochemists Israeli Jews Israel Prize in medicine recipients Israel Prize women recipients Women biologists Israeli immunologists Medical educators Wolf Prize in Medicine laureates Academic staff of Weizmann Institute of Science Members of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities Jewish chemists Women inventors Presidents of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities Israeli women scientists Women biochemists Israeli women physicians Israeli women chemists Members of the American Philosophical Society Honorary Officers of the Order of the British Empire