Life Sciences Laboratory

About the Laboratory

The Life Sciences Laboratory is a workspace for researchers who focus on the field of life sciences.

Intestinal Parasite Research Laboratory
The scope of our research laboratory is intestinal parasites with emphasis on zoonotic diseases (diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans). The laboratory is equipped with biohazard hood and digitalized microscopic imaging. We are using Molecular Biology techniques to monitor and identify parasites in Israel.

Research on Reproduction of Domestic and Wild Animals
The study of domestic animals focuses on pregnancy, periparturient, and the post-natal period. Specifically for the female dog and her offsprings these are sensitive periods. The studies combine investigation of gestation and peripartum periods, as well as study of newborn domestic animals. Specifically, the research focuses on different aspects of pregnancy and amniotic fluid in female dogs and on understanding and treating fading puppy syndrome (FPS). This is a common syndrome among dogs, which leads to a high death rate in affected litters.
Research is also being conducted in the laboratory on the reproductive systems and fertility of different wild animals in the Hula Agamon area. A study of lutra lutra concentrates on rehabilitation of the population in Hula Agamon as a model. Research has also been conducted on the Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus), with the purpose of promoting conservation of an endangered bat species using assisted reproduction techniques (ART). Prevention of fertility in invasive species is also a topic of research, with emphasis on invasive species in and around the Agamon.

Research Areas

Intestinal Parasite Research

1.   Molecular Epidemiology of the zoonotic tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus in Israel
2.   Giardiasis in the Jordan River basin
3.   Habronemiasis: an emerging nematode disease in horses in Israel
4.   Spirocercosis: a carcinogenis nematode in canines

Research on Reproduction
The research of domestic animals focuses on canines and felines:
1.   Characterization of amniotic fluid in female dogs
2.   Metabolic characterization of fetal fluids in female dog during gestation
3.   Characterization of FPS
4.   Contraception canines and felines
The research of wild animals includes two areas:
1. Otters (lutra) – This study involves monitoring individuals in the population in and around the Hula Agamon, to determine the size of the population, its composition (distribution of genders and ages), and its health and nutritional state; determination of the genetic diversity of the population (the degree to which genetic information is exchanges between subpopulations); and follow-up of individuals to learn about the behavior and functioning of the reproductive system and the reproductive cycle of lutra in the Hula Agamon region, to evaluate the sexual vitality of the population.
2.Egyptian fruit bats – The research includes monitoring the reproductive cycle and employment of ART to create a reproductive model for use with endangered bat species.

Staff and Researchers

Prof. Eran Dvir – Head of the Laboratory
Mail: [email protected]
Phone: (+) 972-53-3367370

Dr. Smadar Tal – Researcher
Mail: [email protected]
Phone: (+) 972-50-8989060

Research at the Laboratory

Intestinal Parasite Research

Echinococcosis study
Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a life-threatening zoonosis. It is one of 17 neglected zoonotic diseases (NZDs) which affects over 2 million people all over the world. The disease is caused by the larval stage of the Echinococcus cestode which belongs to the Taeniidae family. Life cycle requires a predator- prey association between two mammalian hosts. Canines, as definitive host, harbor adult tapeworms in their small intestine and shed gravid proglottids with infective eggs in their feces. These eggs, once ingested by a suitable intermediate host, such as ovine, bovine or human (as dead end host), penetrate the small intestine as oncospheres and develop into larval hydatid cysts in various internal organs including liver, lungs and brain.

Echinococcosis study objectives
*   Determine the prevalence of echinococcosis in human, ovine, bovine, dogs, wild canines and wild herbivores in Israel, especially the northern Golan Heights.
*   Assessment of the main risk factors for echinococcosis infection.
*   Genotyping of Echinococcus granulosus in Israel as a mean of drawing the domestic and sylvatic life cycles.
*   To suggest measures to monitor and control this disease in Israel

Activities
*   Collect ovine and bovine cysts from herds in the northern Israel and test for echinococcosis using microscopy and PCR.
*   Collect dogs' fecal samples in the northern Golan Heights and test for presence of echinococcosis using microscopy and copro-PCR.
*   Survey of wild canines and wild herbivores echinococcosis prevalence in northern Israel using microscopy and PCR
*   Conduct genetic variation studies by sequencing for genotypes of the positive samples in order to draw the domestic and sylvatic life cycle.
*   Determine the genotyping of Echinococcus granulosus in humans and to determine human infection within the life cycles

Grants: Israel Chief Scientist, The Ministry of Agriculture 2017-2019, The Ministry of Environmental Protection 2023-2024.
Partners: Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, The Kimron Veterinary Institute, Beit Dagan, The Central Laboratory, Ministry of Health Jerusalem

Giardiasis the Jordan River basin
The Jordan River Basin is the most important natural water source in Israel. However, the basin is suffering from various contaminants including, intensive agriculture, wild and domestic animals, excretions, travelers and recycle sewage drainage.
*   To examine water in various locations and seasons for parasites especially Giardia.
*   Molecular epidemiology of Giardia intestinalis and comparing to various animals and humans to find the sources of the water contamination and its impact on humans in the area.

Habronemiasis study
Habronema is a common intestinal nematode of equids, with a global distribution. Although it is especially common in warm climates, it was also reported in northern countries. The nematode causes sub-clinical gastric ulceration that is diagnosed during necropsy. In some cases the larva migrates into the cutaneous and mucous tissues (including the conjunctiva, prepuce and lips) and induces hypersensitivity and granulomatous reaction that is difficult to cure (also called summer sores).
Study Objectives:
*   To diagnose and describe cases of habronemiasis in horses in Northern Israel.
*   To confirm the diagnosis using histopathology and PCR.
*   To isolate the nematode and identify the species by PCR and sequencing.

Spirocercosis study
Spirocerca lupi (S. lupi) is a nematode of worldwide distribution, but it is most commonly found in tropical and subtropical regions. Dogs are the definitive hosts and become infected by ingesting the coprophagous beetle intermediate hosts. After ingestion, the larvae are liberated in the gastric lumen and migrate through the gastric mucosa, the gastric arteries and through the thoracic aortic wall to the caudal oesophagus. Typically, the worms settle within the esophageal wall, mature to adults and promote formation of a fibroblastic nodule. The oesophageal nodule can progress to sarcomatous neoplasia in 25-33% of the dogs.
Study Objectives:
To study the esophageal nodule during its development from inflammatory fibrous nodule to sarcoma, using immunohistochemistry, and more specifically measuring the expression of various inflammatory mediators.

Research on Reproduction

Bats
Bats constitute one-fifth of all mammals on earth. It is only recently that their great importance to ecology and species diversity has been discovered. However, there is still much unknown about most bat species. This research concentrates on the common fruit bat (R. aegyptiacus), the only fruit bat in the state of Israel. The purpose of the study is to expand the limited existing knowledge about the structure of the mating cycle of females. In addition, the research focuses on performing different hormonal manipulations to synchronize the rut of the female fruit bat in a way that enables insemination that is independent of the natural mating season of the mammal. For this purpose, different protocols are examined along the reproductive cycle, and, using diverse tools with noninvasive methods, we monitor the reproductive performance of the female fruit bat. This species serves the laboratory as a research model for reproduction in bats. In the males, research is being conducted on the preservation of semen. The results of this study will enable the development of future research on the subject, which is likely to contribute to preservation of bat species.

Eurasian otter
This study includes new methods to monitor otters at the Hula Agamon, as a model of the otters condition in Israel. Data will be collected from otters and environmental samples, using cameras, footprint collected using traditional methods for analytical machine learning enabled algorithms, as well as fecal matter for genomic as well as hormonal analyses. Detection of individual otters, sub- species identification, sexing, and specimen collections for genetic population monitoring. Feces is used for detection of sex hormones, to study the otter’s reproductive system, its conditions and seasonal patterns in both sexes.
This research presents a preliminary step that will contribute to the establishment of a breeding seed in the otter’s natural habitat, and by this to contribute to the restoration of the Eurasian otter population at the Hula reserve and later on in other original habitats in Israel.

Fading Puppy Syndrome
Fading puppy syndrome (FPS) is a common fatal syndrome reported in up to 30% of puppy litters in the first weeks of life. The etiology of FPS in unknown, but it includes contaminant, environmental, developmental and other factors. The clinical presentation is nonspecific, making it difficult to identify and treat. In an early analysis of the composition of the fecal microbiome of newborn dogs, differences were found in the measures of microbial variety between health puppies and those that developed FPS and died as a result. The findings indicated a specific microbial phenotype that characterized the puppies that died from FPS. However, microbial composition alone does not fully represent the complex interactions that occur between the host and the microbes of the digestive system, which are expressed in the metabolic products of these microbes (the metabolome). In addition, metabolomic studies are essential to application of results from microbiome studies to help understand the functioning of the microbiome and to development of specific manipulations that could help the host and the microbiome (for example, giving post-biotics, bacterial metabolomes that have a beneficial effect on the host). In this case, this could contribute to early detection, prevention and treatment of FPS.
The research deals with characterization of the metabolome and microbiomes of the feces and oral cavity of newborn dogs and characterization of the metabolome and the microbiome of the feces, vagina, milk and oral cavity of the mother dogs on the first day and first week after birth, to evaluate the existing reciprocal relationships and how they are related to the development of FPS.
The findings may reveal the contribution of puppy and mother microbiomes and metabolomes to the development of FPS and help set specific diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic goals in early detection, treatment, and prevention of the syndrome.

Research of amniotic fluid of female dogs
This research is focused on creating a profile of amniotic fluid in health female dogs. Specifically, it aims to contribute to the development of sampling methods and a systems of biomarkers for evaluation of the health of the gestation and survival of offspring.

Selected Publications

Intestinal Parasite Research

Rojas A, Dvir E, Baneth G. Insights on Spirocerca lupi, the Carcinogenic Dog Nematode. Trends in Parasitology. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2019.10.004

Salant H , Rojas A, Yardeny D, Brenner O, Schvartz G, Baneth G , Dvir E. Cutaneous habronemosis in horses: First molecular characterization of Habronema muscae in Israel. Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cimid.2020.101608

Yasur-Landau D, Genad O, Salant H, Dvir E, Monica L. Mazuz, Baneth G. Comparison of multiplex copro PCR with coproscopy followed by PCR on recovered eggs for the detection of Echinococcus granulosus and Taenia spp. infection in dogs. Vet Parasitol. 2023. Accepted for publication.

Research on Reproduction

Tal S., Sutton GA, Arlt SP, Kahila Bar-Gal G.) Analysis of biochemical parameters in canine fetal fluids during the second half of pregnancy. published in Theriogenology,2022 Vol 189 p 31-41.

Novak S., Yakobson B., Sorek S., Morgan L., Tal. S., Nivy R., King R., Jaebker L., Eckery D.C., Raz T. Short term safety, immunogenicity, and reproductive effects of combined vaccination with anti-GnRH (Gonacon) and rabies vaccines in female feral cats. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2021, 8:1-17

Tal S., Shilo- Benjamini Y., Anesthesia, pain management and surgical approach of ovariectomy or castration in Egyptian fruit bats (Rousettus aegyptiacus). Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2023 Vol 10: 1121526

Tal S., Tikhonov E., Aroch I., Hefetz L., Koren O., Kuzi S. Developmental intestinal microbiome alterations in canine fading puppy syndrome: a prospective observational study. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes, 2021, 7(52):1-10.