Meet Druze leaders changing Israel for the better Prof. Fuad Fares, associate human biology professor, University of Haifa “I think I was the first from my village to get a PhD in medical sciences,” says Fares, a 65-year-old native of Hurfeish. The extended Fares family accounts for about 1,000 of the 7,000 residents of this village between Nahariya and Safed. His second cousin, Muhana, heads the Bureau for National Programs at Israel’s Ministry of Education. A full-time associate professor at the University of Haifa’s department of human biology, Fares founded the molecular genetics lab at Carmel Medical Center and has headed it for 24 years. His goal is to screen the Druze population for genetic diseases. “Marriage is forbidden outside the religion, and it’s important for us to remain in the same community, so we are a genetic incubator,” Fares tells ISRAEL21c. “I saw that genetic diseases are a problem in some families. Therefore we encourage people to come for screening and genetic counseling in collaboration with the Ministry of Health.” Fares got his first degree at Hebrew University and his master’s and doctorate at the Technion. He did postdoctoral studies in molecular biology and pharmacology at Washington University in St. Louis. With Lital Sharvit, who earned her PhD in his lab, Fares is developing a biologic treatment for pancreatic cancer using extracts from a unique Israeli mushroom and other plants. The university’s tech-transfer arm, Carmel, established CanCurX to advance and commercialize this technology. “CanCurX has another project in gene therapy,” says Fares. “We look for genes in cancer cells that are silenced or mutated and use them for treatment of cancer.” He’s also searching for genetic markers in families prone to cancer; and with the European Commission is developing a novel nanoparticle drug-delivery system to direct medication to cancer cells. Fares, author of more than 75 papers published in major journals, served for 15 years on the Israel Council for Higher Education. He says his parents encouraged academic studies and he and his wife have done the same for their two sons and two daughters. Fares proudly reports that each child finished a degree in the past year: two PhDs, one master’s degree and one BA – so far. “I believe if you direct yourself to excellence then you will have no problem” getting ahead in Israeli society, he says. ?? IF YOU LOVE ISRAEL - SHARE NEWSRAEL! ?? Source: Israel21C.org