Israeli Profs Win Canadian Gairdner Awards

TORONTO — Hebrew University of Jerusalem medical professor Howard Cedar and biochemistry professor Aharon Razin are two of the five 2011 winners of the Canada Gairdner International Awards, presented annually to researchers from around the world for outstanding contributions to medical science.
Both Cedar and Razin are members of the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC) at Hebrew U’s faculty of medicine. They’re the first Hebrew U professors to win the Gairdner Awards. The Gairdner Foundation created them to honour work that contributes significantly to improving the quality of life.
Cedar and Razin are being honoured for their contributions to the control of gene expression and cancer research. The pair is renowned for explaining the role of DNA methylation in the biological function of higher organisms. In 2008, they won Israel’s prestigious Wolf Prize in Medicine for their research.
Razin, a Tel Aviv native, has been a Hebrew U faculty member since 1971. Cedar, a native of New York, came to Israel in 1973 and joined Hebrew U’s medical faculty.
The awards will be presented in October in Toronto.

CJC Lauds Funding

TORONTO — Canadian Jewish Congress praised the $1.6 million in permanent funding pledged to the Security Infrastructure Program in last week’s federal budget. The initiative – which provides up to 50 per cent of the cost of security infrastructure projects at schools, houses of worship and community centres, up to $100,000 – was established in 2007 as a three-year, $3-million pilot program to help communities targeted by hate-motivated crime. Congress had lobbied for secure funding for the program.

Israel Trips Tallied

OTTAWA — For the second year in a row, Israel came second to Taiwan as the most popular destination for junketing MPs. Ten MPs and their spouses – including seven Tories – took trips to Israel sponsored by the Canada-Israel Committee and worth $90,500. Twenty MPs went to Taiwan, among them 15 Tories, Canadian Press reported, citing figures from the conflict of interest and ethics commissioner’s office. Turkey and Paris registered eight trips each.