Excellence
in Research
Birzeit has long been a birthplace for
academic research: a honing ground for
researchers and home for knowledge in
Palestine. Following are just a few examples
of the groundbreaking work being carried
out by our world-class researchers.
Did You Know? Grape Leaves Help Combat Lung Cancer
Biology and Biochemistry Professor Dr. Jamil Harb
collaborated with his students at Birzeit University to
explore the health-promoting phytochemicals of grapes.
Through this research project, the team aimed to
demonstrate the importance of grape leaves in combating
lung cancer.
After extensive analysis and research, the team of
researchers discovered that grape leaves from Beit Omar
Village in Hebron significantly reduce the proliferation of
lung cancer cells.
Birzeit University Graduate Moves One Step Closer to Disarming AIDS Virus
Dr. Jamil Saad, a Birzeit University graduate who now
serves as an associate professor of microbiology at the
University of Alabama at Birmingham, has identified the
final unknown structure of the HIV virus that leads to
acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
By utilizing novel approaches and state-of-the-art
technology, Saad and his colleagues were able to determine
the cytoplasmic tail molecular structure of the gp41
protein, which plays a crucial role in incorporating the virus
spike into receptors of healthy cells and causing AIDS.
“This protein has been of interest for a long time, and
nobody understands how it functions in infection or how it
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helps incorporate the envelope protein into new virions to
become infectious,” he commented.
This accomplishment will help other researchers further
understand how the virus infects human cells and how
progeny viruses are assembled and released from infected
cells. The researchers hope that this discovery will open
up a number of new avenues of research into possible
therapies and vaccines for HIV.
“If we are able to inhibit incorporation of the envelope
protein into new virions, we will inhibit viral replication,”
Saad added, “This would disarm the virus and prevent
disease.”
New Discovery Paves Way for Improved Cancer Treatment Efficacy
A potential cure for cancer discovered at Birzeit University
has been tested on three cancer cell lines using the extract
of Palestinian plant Arum palaestinum. With further
research, the treatment has a high chance of becoming an
alternative medical treatment.
Recent shifts in medical treatment strategies make a world
of difference for the treatment of chronic degenerative
diseases, especially cancer. While conventional oncologists
still continue to rely on drug- or chemotherapy-based
treatment protocols (which have been proven to produce
long-term side effects), new studies are shifting toward
complementary and anticancer-agent approaches extracted
from natural sources.
Starting from that point, a joint study conducted by
prominent researchers from Birzeit University, Al-Quds
University, and the University of Petra in Jordan shows that
many plants and medicinal herbal extracts can be used in
the treatment of various ailments.
The team of researchers thoroughly studied the effect of
A. palaestinum on cancer cell lines. A. palaestinum, a low-
growing tuberous perennial plant with heart or arrow-
shaped leaves, was chosen based on its use in traditional
Palestinian herbal medicine.
The team consisted of Director of Samih Darwazah
Institute for Pharmaceutical Industries in Birzeit University
Hani Naseef, Pharmacy Doctors at Birzeit University Heba
Qadadha and Yara Abu Asfour, graduates from the Master
Program in Clinical Laboratory Science at Birzeit University,
and members from the Department of Chemistry at the
College of Science and Technology at Al-Quds University
and the Department of Pharmacology and Medical Sciences
at the University of Petra.
The research team investigated the effect on three
different cancer cell lines, which revealed the direct
inhibitory effect of the A. palaestinum plant extracts. The
aqueous boiled extract was more effective at lower extract
concentrations, the researchers discovered, and therefore
has a potential anticancer effect.
The lack of effective treatments available to help
thousands of those with cancer inspired this joint research.
The latest discovery paves the way for more investigations
to elucidate this medicinal herb’s mechanisms of action.
Can Soda Increase Your Appetite?
A recent study by Biology and Biochemistry Professor Dr.
Johnny Stiban indicates that carbonated beverages lead
to increased food consumption in mammals, resulting in
excessive weight gain in comparison to non-carbonated
beverages.
The study, conducted by Stiban and biology students
Dureen Samandar Eweis and Fida’ Abed, was carried
out on male rats in the university’s laboratories, and its
procedures and results were published in the Obesity
Research and Clinical Practice Journal.
By reviewing the effects of carbon dioxide – which is
added to carbonated beverages, hence their name – on
hormone secretion in male rats, the study showed that
rats that consumed carbonated beverages over a period of
approximately one year gained weight at a rate faster than
rats that were given still beverages or tap water.
The difference in weight gain can be attributed to elevated
levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin and, consequently, a
greater food intake.
After doing the experiment on rats, 20 male students were
tested for their ghrelin levels after ingesting different
beverages. The ghrelin levels were found to be higher in
comparison to their levels pre-testing, corroborating the
study’s results.
“The result of the study implicates carbon dioxide gas in soft
drinks as playing a major role in inducing weight gain and
the onset of obesity via ghrelin release and stimulation of
the hunger response in male mammals,” noted the study.
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