Manfred Aschner (; 21 May 1901 – 1989) was an Israeli

microbiologist A microbiologist (from Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and some types of par ...

and

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

. Recipient of the

Israel Prize The Israel Prize (; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor. History Prior to the Israel Prize, the most significant award in the arts was the Dizengoff Prize and in Israel ...

in Life Sciences. He was a professor in the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion.

Biography

Early life and education

Aschner was born in 1901 in

Racibórz Racibórz (, , , ) is a city in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. It is the administrative seat of Racibórz County. With Opole, Racibórz is one of the historic capitals of Upper Silesia, being the residence of the Duchy of Racibórz, Du ...

, then part of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. In 1923, he studied at the Agricultural College in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

(

Landwirtschaftliche Hochschule Berlin The Agricultural University of Berlin () was an agricultural university in Berlin, Germany. Established in 1881, it was closed in 1934, and incorporated as a faculty into the Humboldt University of Berlin. History Academic teaching in agricultur ...

), affiliated with

Humboldt University The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public university, public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III of Prussia, Frederick W ...

. In 1924, he immigrated to

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and worked as a pioneer. During his work, he met Professor Theodor, who invited him to join the malaria research unit in

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

Career and Research

In 1926, Aschner was invited by Professor Israel Kligler to the Hebrew University and engaged in the study of insect-borne diseases. Four years later, he was awarded a doctorate by the

University of Breslau A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

in Germany for his thesis on the symbiont-host relationships between bacteria and flies of the Puppipara group. He then joined the Department of Hygiene and Bacteriology at the

Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. It is the second-ol ...

and lived in the

Neve Yaakov Neve Yaakov (; also ''Neve Ya'aqov'', lit. Jacob's Oasis) is an Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem, part of the Israeli-occupied territories, north of the settlement of Pisgat Ze'ev and south of the Palestinian locality of al-Ram. Establishe ...

settlement. In 1934, he and Dr. Kligler researched the possibility of vaccinating animals against typhus. In 1945, he was promoted to lecturer. During the armistice of the War of Independence, Aschner volunteered for the Science Corps ("Hemed") and worked with other scientists on preparing vaccines against typhus. During this period, he lived with his family in Tel Aviv due to his work and the evacuation of Neve Yaakov. In 1950, Aschner returned to Jerusalem and worked as a lecturer at the medical school. With the establishment of the Faculty of Food and Biotechnology Engineering at the Technion in 1956, Professor Aschner joined the faculty and moved to Haifa. In the same year, he was awarded the Israel Prize in Life Sciences for his contributions to the study of life sciences, including his research on the systematics of microorganisms and the discovery of the cause of fish mortality in fishponds. He did not attend the award ceremony and requested to donate the prize to the Magen Fund. Professor Aschner's research areas included various fields of microbiology, including microbial ecology and biochemical processes. Along with Professor Carl Reich and others, he discovered a new species of algae (Prymnesium parvum) in 1946 and identified it as the cause of fish mortality in fishponds. Together with his research partners, Aschner found a way to limit the growth of the algae.

Later life and legacy

In 1970, he retired and was named professor emeritus. In 1973, he retired from active research to care for his sick wife. In 1977, he participated in the World Energy Conference in Istanbul.

Awards

* In 1956, Aschner was awarded the

, for the

life sciences This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that involve the scientific study of life – such as microorganisms, plants, and animals including human beings. This science is one of the two major branches of natural science, ...

Biography

Early life and education

Career and Research

Later life and legacy

Awards

References

See also