Prof. Rotem Sorek is internationally renowned for his groundbreaking work on the interactions between bacteria and the viruses that infect them. His discoveries of how bacteria combat viral infections have led to the identification of new immune systems and opened a vast new field in microbiology, and his research on small-molecule communication among viruses represents a paradigm shift in virology. His research revealed that key components of the human innate immune system originated from bacterial defense against phages and showed that this ancestry is shared between bacteria, plants, and animals. His studies have identified new kinds of small molecules used by bacteria and eukaryotes for intracellular signaling, as well as reverse-transcribed non-coding RNAs involved in defense. His work has also shown that some bacterial immune systems can produce a variety of small molecules that inhibit viral replication and can thus be harvested and developed for clinical use as anti-viral drugs. Multiple technologies emerging from his lab have been commercialized, demonstrating the highly innovative nature of his studies and his leadership in basic and applied groundbreaking research.
Prof. Sorek is the recipient of numerous accolades, including the Rappaport Prize for Excellence in Biomedical Research, the Beutler Research Program Award for Excellence in Genomic Medicine, the FEBS Anniversary Prize, the Teva Founders Award for Young Scientists, and Israel Society for Microbiology’s Rubinowitz-Grossman Prize for Outstanding Young Scientists. He has been elected to multiple international academic societies, including the American Academy of Microbiology, the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), the European Academy of Microbiology, and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. He was awarded several ERC grants, including the 2011 ERC Starting Grant, the 2016 ERC Consolidator Grant and the 2022 Advanced Grant.