Professor Howard (Chaim) Cedar, a Safra Distinguished Professor at the Department of Developmental Biology & Cancer Research at Hebrew University has made pioneering contributions in the field of genetics. He discovered that, in addition to the genetic “text” inherited from our parents, which contains all of the instructions for making every component of the human body, there is also a system of “annotation” that marks this “text” and represents a further layer of information.

This annotation, which is accomplished chemically through DNA methylation, marks genes as being either active or silent and constitutes the cornerstone of human development. Methylation plays a role in many diseases and especially cancer where Prof. Cedar’s discoveries have led to the development of new approaches for diagnosing and treating this disease. DNA methylation also holds the key for understanding how the environment impacts on human behavior.