BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer

BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer BGN is the technology transfer company of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), delivering innovation from the desert to the world.

BGN transforms scientific discoveries into innovative technologies, startups, and collaborations.

🛌 More than snoring: new research links obstructive sleep apnea with changes in skeletal muscle quality.A new study from...
04/06/2026

🛌 More than snoring: new research links obstructive sleep apnea with changes in skeletal muscle quality.

A new study from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Soroka University Medical Center סורוקה - מרכז רפואי אוניברסיטאי, published in Sleep and Breathing by Springer Nature, shows a significant association between obstructive sleep apnea and changes in skeletal muscle quality.

🫁 Obstructive sleep apnea affects about 30% of adults. During sleep, the upper airways repeatedly collapse, causing breathing pauses, drops in oxygen levels, and disrupted sleep. While the condition is often associated with snoring, fatigue, concentration difficulties, and cardiovascular or respiratory risks, this study points to another important dimension: its association with skeletal muscle quality, alongside earlier findings linking the condition with reduced bone density.

🩻 The research team analyzed CT scans performed for various medical reasons, allowing them to assess bone density and muscle composition without additional tests or unnecessary radiation exposure. The findings showed that people with obstructive sleep apnea had lower skeletal muscle density and a higher skeletal muscle index than those without sleep apnea. Together, this pattern may reflect changes in muscle composition and quality, rather than simply muscle mass.

The study was led by Prof. Ariel Tarasiuk, Director of the Sleep-Wake Disorders Unit at Soroka University Medical Center and a researcher in the Department of Physiology at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, together with Prof. Ilan Shelef, Director of the Imaging Institute at Soroka University Medical Center. The research team included Dr. Sharon Daniel from the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the Pediatric Division at Soroka University Medical Center, and medical student Samuel Francis.

🦴 The findings build on an earlier study by the same research group, published in Scientific Reports, which found a link between obstructive sleep apnea and decreased bone density.

The researchers call for routine integration of bone density and muscle quality assessment into the analysis of existing CT scans, as well as dedicated follow-up and treatment pathways for patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

📰 The study was also covered by Fox News (Fox News Health), highlighting the broader public relevance of this research.

🔗Link in the comments.

💓 Can approved drugs help prevent one of the world's most common heart rhythm disorders?A new study led by Prof. Yoram E...
03/06/2026

💓 Can approved drugs help prevent one of the world's most common heart rhythm disorders?

A new study led by Prof. Yoram Etzion and MD-PhD student Or Levi from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev published in European Society of Cardiology suggests that two widely used drugs, semaglutide and colchicine, may reduce susceptibility to atrial fibrillation (AF), the most common cardiac arrhythmia worldwide.

Preventing AF remains a major challenge. The condition develops through a complex process of atrial remodeling, involving inflammation, fibrosis, and electrical changes in the heart. Most current treatments address AF after it develops, while effective preventive approaches are still limited.

Using a unique long-term cardiac monitoring platform developed in Prof. Etzion’s laboratory, the team demonstrated that both drugs significantly reduced AF susceptibility in a preclinical model. Notably, semaglutide reduced atrial fibrosis to nearly healthy levels, even in the absence of diabetes or obesity.

The study highlights a promising direction: targeting the early biological mechanisms that drive AF, while using advanced monitoring technology to track disease progression over time. This approach could open new opportunities for preventing AF using drugs approved for other indications.

Congratulations to Prof. Yoram Etzion, Or Levi, Dr. Gal Tsaban from סורוקה - מרכז רפואי אוניברסיטאי Prof. Avishag Laish-Farkash and Dr. Yana Kakzanov from בית החולים אסותא אשדוד ע"ש סמסון Dr. Gideon Gradwohl from Friends of Jerusalem College of Technology Prof. Bernard Attali from Tel Aviv University | אוניברסיטת תל-אביב and all co-authors and collaborators on this important achievement.

The work was supported by the Israel Science Foundation, the Israel Heart Society - האיגוד הקרדיולוגי בישראל and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

This is another example of how academic research can open new paths toward future therapeutic strategies for major unmet medical needs.

Link to more technologies in Health & Medical Devices in the comments.

When one peptide can speak to many immune systems.A new computational approach developed by Prof. Tomer Hertz of Ben-Gur...
27/05/2026

When one peptide can speak to many immune systems.

A new computational approach developed by Prof. Tomer Hertz of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev may help address one of the major challenges in T-cell-based vaccine design: creating immune responses that work across genetically diverse populations.

T cells do not recognize infected or cancerous cells directly. They recognize peptides presented on the cell surface by HLA molecules, one of the most diverse regions of the human genome, with more than 22,000 known genetic variants. As a result, a peptide that triggers a strong immune response in one person may be invisible to another.

Prof. Hertz, together with students Elinor Peer and Liel Cohen-Lavi, and additional researchers from La Jolla Institute for Immunology, developed a computational method known as “Super HLA” to identify 9-amino-acid peptides capable of binding across multiple HLA supertypes.

The team began with more than 190,000 candidate peptides, selected 100 for synthesis and laboratory testing in the lab of Prof. Alessandro Sette, and experimentally validated 24 as true “super-binders.” Of these, 21 bound to four or more HLA supertypes, and one bound to 9 out of 12.

Published in PNAS, the findings open a path toward designing peptides with broad immunological coverage across genetically diverse populations, with potential relevance for cancer vaccines, vaccines against global infectious diseases, and populations that are underrepresented in existing reference datasets.

The roots of the idea go back nearly 15 years, to a conversation between Prof. Hertz and Dr. Chen Yanover, then both postdoctoral fellows at Fred Hutch in Seattle. As Prof. Hertz notes, good ideas are worth continuing to dig into, even long after the first sketch was written on a whiteboard.

This is another example of how computational biology and immunology research at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev can open new directions for real-world biomedical innovation.

Additional Biotechnology & Bio-Convergence technologies from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in the comments.

🌾 This Shavuot, we celebrate the roots of innovation 🌾From ancient harvest traditions to breakthrough technologies shapi...
20/05/2026

🌾 This Shavuot, we celebrate the roots of innovation 🌾

From ancient harvest traditions to breakthrough technologies shaping the future of food, agriculture has always been about growth, resilience, and imagination.
At .tech, we are proud to represent innovations born at that are advancing Agri-food, sustainability, water technologies, AI-driven agriculture, and climate resilience- helping grow more with less, even in some of the world’s most challenging environments.

Because today’s “first fruits” are not only grown in the field- they’re also developed in labs, powered by data, and built for a more sustainable future. 🌱

Curious to explore BGN innovations in Agri-food & Water Technologies?
Link in the comments 👇

Wishing everyone a happy, innovative, and green Shavuot! 💚

Israel 2026 is here.The BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer team is at the conference throughout the event,...
11/05/2026

Israel 2026 is here.

The BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer team is at the conference throughout the event, meeting with companies, investors, healthcare organizations, and innovation partners to explore collaboration opportunities with researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Our Business Development team and Bio-Innovation Unit are available for one-on-one meetings focused on:

• Joint research opportunities

• Sponsored and applied research collaborations

• Scientific consulting by academic experts

• Technology licensing opportunities

• Bio-convergence and multidisciplinary innovation initiatives

• Funding and commercialization pathways for academia-industry collaborations

Whether you are looking to advance a new technology, connect with leading researchers, or explore strategic R&D partnerships, we would be happy to meet.

📍 David InterContinental, Tel Aviv

📅 May 12-14, 2026

🤝 To schedule a meeting: [email protected]

Heading to Israel 2026?Meet the BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer team to explore collaboration opportuni...
07/05/2026

Heading to Israel 2026?

Meet the BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer team to explore collaboration opportunities with researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

Our Business Development team and Bio-Innovation Unit will be available throughout the event for one-on-one meetings focused on:

• Joint research opportunities

• Sponsored and applied research collaborations

• Scientific consulting by academic experts

• Technology licensing opportunities

• Bio-convergence and multidisciplinary innovation initiatives

• Funding and commercialization pathways for academia-industry collaborations

Whether you are looking to advance a new technology, connect with leading researchers, or explore strategic R&D partnerships, we would be happy to meet.

📍 Israel 2026

May 12-14, 2026

David InterContinental, Tel Aviv

To schedule a meeting: [email protected]

🦠 Tell me who your microbial neighbours are, and I’ll tell you what role you may play.New research from Ben-Gurion Unive...
06/05/2026

🦠 Tell me who your microbial neighbours are, and I’ll tell you what role you may play.

New research from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, recently published in Nature Microbiology by Springer Nature, reveals that microbes living in communities can sense who is around them and adjust their activity accordingly.

Instead of all competing for the same resources, neighbouring microbes may shift toward different functional roles, reducing competition and supporting coexistence within the community.

The study, led by Dr. Sarah Moraïs under the supervision of Prof. Itzhak Mizrahi, offers new insight into one of the fundamental questions in microbial ecology: how diverse microorganisms manage to live together in complex environments.

This deeper understanding could have important implications for how microbial communities are studied, managed, and eventually engineered across fields such as health, agriculture, food systems, and environmental applications.

At BGN - Ben-Gurion University Technology Transfer, we connect breakthrough research from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev with industry partners looking to explore real-world applications.

🔗 Related Biotechnology & Bio-Convergence technologies from BGU in the comments.

🔦 4 things you can do with light and technologies from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev: 🔹 Improve high-speed optical ...
04/05/2026

🔦 4 things you can do with light and technologies from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev:
🔹 Improve high-speed optical communication
🔹 Make on-chip optical devices more efficient
🔹 Enhance sensing and imaging systems
🔹 Help secure AI through optical encryption

1 thing you still can’t do:
🤺 Build a lightsaber.

🚀Have an innovative day, and May the 4th be with you.

🔗 Light-, photonics-, and optics-based BGU technologies: links in the comments.

💡 💫 Inspiring the next generation to aim higher As part of ‘Israeli Girls Week’, Dr. Anat Shperberg-Avni, Head of the B...
29/04/2026

💡 💫 Inspiring the next generation to aim higher

As part of ‘Israeli Girls Week’, Dr. Anat Shperberg-Avni, Head of the Bio-Innovation Unit at BGN, met with 8th-grade students at Yigal Alon School in Givatayim, just as they stand at the threshold of high school and the choices that come with it.

In her talk, Dr. Shperberg-Avni encouraged students to challenge themselves, choose paths that build confidence and open future opportunities, and most importantly, believe in their own abilities. Anat shared her personal journey and key decision points, from early childhood to her current role at BGN, a unit she established two years ago. She provided insights into the role of a technology transfer company, the meaning of innovation within academic research, and how we support the transformation of scientific discoveries into real-world products.

This initiative is led by Shavot - שוות, an organization working to reduce gender gaps and strengthen confidence, capability, and ambition among young girls across Israel. Their work plays an important role in shaping a more equal future.

At Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, researchers from all backgrounds are driving real-world impact through science and innovation. Women and men alike are leading breakthroughs across fields, translating knowledge into technologies, startups, and global collaborations.

We look forward to seeing more young women stepping into research, innovation, and leadership roles in the years ahead, continuing to shape the future through science.

For more about the BGN team, visit our website. Link in the comments.

💡Companies are not short on innovation opportunities - They’re short on safe ways to act on them. That’s where IP comes ...
26/04/2026

💡Companies are not short on innovation opportunities - They’re short on safe ways to act on them. That’s where IP comes in.

There’s a common belief that intellectual property slows things down. In reality, it’s what makes progress possible. Without a clear IP framework, companies hesitate. They delay collaboration and miss the chance to shape early-stage technologies.

🤝 IP creates the conditions for collaboration. It brings clarity, aligns expectations, and enables confident engagement with academic research.

At Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, research constantly opens new possibilities. IP is what allows those discoveries to move beyond the lab and create real-world impact.

IP isn’t a constraint - it’s the infrastructure that makes innovation actionable.

🥳 On International IP Day, that’s something worth celebrating 🥳

אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב | World Intellectual Property Organization

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