Dr. Haitham Amal
The School of Pharmacy in the Faculty of Medicine
Born and raised in Haifa, Dr. Haitham Amal attended a Nuns Italian School. Upon graduating, he began his academic journey at the young age of 17.5 years old, with a first degree in Pharmacy, from the Hebrew University. From there he moved to Tel Aviv University for his master’s degree in the Faculty of Medicine, where he investigated the impact of cannabis on memory and cognition. Upon graduating magna cum laude, he moved to Haifa to the Technion Institute, Department of Chemical Engineering, for his doctorate, during which he researched the diagnosis of cancer through exhaled breath. With several offers for postdoctoral fellowships, Dr. Amal decided that the next stage of his academic journey would be at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston (MIT). It was there that he started his journey working on the autism spectrum disorder.
Dr. Amal’s research has been widely published, with more than twelve papers on the diagnosis of cancer through exhaled breath; and he has been the recipient of many awards including the Ministry of Education award for outstanding students.
The first paper of his postdoctoral research was published in the Journal of Molecular Psychiatry – the leading journal in Psychiatry. It represented the first literature to link nitric oxide with autism spectrum disorder, a key step towards identifying a drug target for the disorder. He has also worked on Alzheimer’s disease, with his research being published in Translational Psychiatry. Dr. Amal was the recipient of many postdoctoral fellowships including the MIT Technion Postdoctoral Fellowship for the Brightest Students.
Dr. Amal is married to his art therapist wife who works with autistic children. They live with their two children in Haifa. In his spare time, Dr. Amal enjoys reading books, singing and watching sports.
Dr. Amal’s Research: In Search of a Cure for Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction, communication and behavior. It is estimated that approximately 1% of the world’s population has Autism spectrum disorder.
Dr. Amal is in pursuit of a cure.
The main thrust of his research centers on the question of how it can be that so many children share similar behaviour deficits, yet display very different genetic mutations. Simply put, how do different genetic mutations lead to the same behavioral deficits among children?
Dr. Amal’s research laboratory is searching for mechanisms that are similar between different mutations. The philosophy being that if they find similarities among the mutations, they will be able to find treatments to address them.
Using genetic-based mouse models, each with a different genetic mutation, he is investigating the biochemistry of the brain in the hope of developing a drug treatment for the mice. The ultimate hope of course is that their findings will translate into clinical trials for humans.
Dr. Amal’s research is also investigating blood samples taken from autistic children in order to find biomarkers that can be effectively diagnosed through the blood. The aim of this element of his research is to develop a simple blood test for diagnosing autism.
According to Dr. Amal, “Ultimately I dream that we find biological markers for the diagnosis of autism, and that we therefore identify therapeutic targets. The dream – of finding a cure for autism - is a big one. But we are working on it, and we will do our best. I believe we will succeed.”
In Haitham Amal’s own words…
How did you first get into your field?
For over a decade I have been interested in neuroscience and it was this fascination that led me to enroll in Tel Aviv University investigating brain disorders and the impact of cannabis. Along my academic journey I found people researching autism – this great amorphous condition about which so little is known. Finding the link between nitric oxide and autism, and knowing so little about the nature of this link and its ramifications, were the main factors that drove me towards my post-doctoral and current research directions.
What is your daily motivation for your work?
Having met with children who are on the autism spectrum, and having seen the immense difficulties that they, and their parents face, every single day, I am very driven to see what I can possibly do to ease their burden.
As a scientist I am on a constant search of drug targets for these crippling brain disorders, and in that way, I feel like I am doing one small thing to help humanity.
How do you feel about returning to Israel?
Having spent four and a half beautiful years in the United States, we are now happy to be back. We have always wanted to raise our children in Israel, and to live near our families. At the same time I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility to contribute towards academia and to advance science in Israel.
Why the Hebrew University?
I see the Hebrew University as the best place to do science in Israel. The Faculty of Medicine here is the best in the country. I’m surrounded by scientists and researchers of the highest caliber, enabling great collaborations to be built within the University. Further, the pharmacists, doctors, and dentists that we teach are of the highest quality, and I feel it is my absolute honor to be in such an institute that supports and promotes its students, its faculties and its research.
Click HERE to learn more about Dr. Amal's Lab.