Ester H. Segal Explained

Ester H. Segal
Alma Mater:Technion - Israel Institute of Technology (B.Sc, M.Sc, PhD)
Workplaces:Technion - Israel Institute of Technology (2007 - current)
Fields:porous silicon biosensors food packaging
Doctoral Advisor:Moshe Narkis

Ester H. Segal is an Israeli nanotechnology researcher and professor in the Department of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, where she heads the Laboratory for Multifunctional Nanomaterials. She is also affiliated with the Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology.[1] Segal is a specialist in porous silicon nanomaterials, as well as nanocomposite materials for active packaging technologies to extend the shelf life of food.

Education

Segal received her bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology in 1997. She earned her master of science degree and PhD from the Technion in polymer science.[2]

Research and career

Segal competed her graduate research with Moshe Narkis at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, where she developed electrically conductive polymer systems and their application as sensors for volatile organic compounds.[3] [4] After completing her PhD in 2004, Segal was awarded the Rothschild Postdoctoral Fellowship and joined the group of Michael J. Sailor at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of California, San Diego from 2004 to 2007. There, she developed porous silicon nanomaterials for drug delivery and optical biosensing purposes. In 2007, She returned to Israel and joined the Department of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology to begin her own research lab. She was promoted to full professor in 2020.

Her research lab focuses on coupling materials science with chemistry and biotechnology to address problems in food technology and medicine.[5] Specific areas include optical biosensing, silicon-based therapeutics, silicon-polymer hybrids, and food packaging technologies.

Optical biosensors

Fabry-Perot interferometers

Using electrochemical etched mesoporous silicon, Segal's research group has developed label-free, optical sensors by means of Fabry-Perot interferometry. These sensors, containing pores between 10 and 100 nm detect analytes such as proteins,[6] [7] DNA,[8] whole bacteria cells,[9] [10] [11] amphipathic molecules on lipid bilayers,[12] organophosphorus compounds,[13] heavy metal ions,[14] and proteolytic products from enzymatic activity.[15] [16] Some of these sensors have been integrated with isotachophoresis and/or engineered with specific surface functions (e.g. attached proteins, enzymes, aptamers, and antimicrobial peptides) to enhance the limits of detection for analytes. She has helped engineer hybrid porous silicon materials for sensing purposes, including carbon dot-infused silicon transducers,[17] hydrogel-confined silicon substrates,[18] and polymer-silicon hybrids.[19]

Diffraction gratings

Segal's research group engineered microstructured silicon optical sensors for the detection of microorganisms, including bacteria and fungi, in clinical samples and food.[20] The microstructured substrates serve as reflective diffraction gratings for label-free measurements of refractive index.[21] [22] Her group (in collaboration with the Department of Urology at the Bnai Zion hospital and Ha'Emek Medical Center) developed a means of rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing for clinical samples.[23]

Porous silicon therapeutics

Segal and her research team engineered porous silicon carriers containing nerve growth factor for delivery to the brain in Alzheimer's models,[24] in addition to carriers of anti-cancer drugs to diseased tissue[25] and bone morphogenetic protein 2.[26] She also demonstrated the delivery of anti-cancer drugs captured in silicon microparticles with a pneumatic capillary gene gun.[27] She has studied the kinetics and degradation of porous silicon therapeutics in disease models,[28] finding that porous silicon materials tend to degrade at faster rates in diseased tissue environments compared to healthy tissue.[29]

Food packaging technologies

Some of Segal's research focuses on development of technologies for active packaging of food usually through the incorporation of polymers, nanomaterials, and essential oils.[30] [31] [32] [33] These materials have antimicrobial properties, allowing them to preserve food for longer times, and reduce food waste.[34]

Professional activities

Entrepreneurship

Segal serves as the CTO to BactuSense Technologies Ltd and was the project coordinator of Nanopak, an EU-funded project that developed food packaging products in order to extend the shelf life of food.[38] [39]

Personal life

Segal is a cancer survivor,[40] married, and has two children.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ester Segal. American Technion Society. en-US. 2020-05-10.
  2. Web site: Prof. Ester Segal Ester Segal Lab. segallab.net.technion.ac.il. 2020-05-10.
  3. Segal. Ester. Tchoudakov. Roza. Narkis. Moshe. Siegmann. Arnon. Yen Wei. 2005-01-03. Polystyrene/polyaniline nanoblends for sensing of aliphatic alcohols. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical. en. 104. 1. 140–150. 10.1016/j.snb.2004.05.002. 0925-4005.
  4. Jia. W.. Segal. E.. Kornemandel. D.. Lamhot. Y.. Narkis. M.. Siegmann. A.. 2002-04-10. Polyaniline–DBSA/organophilic clay nanocomposites: synthesis and characterization. Synthetic Metals. en. 128. 1. 115–120. 10.1016/S0379-6779(01)00672-5. 0379-6779.
  5. Web site: Israeli Women Lead The Way In Thriving Biotech Industry Health News. 2020-03-09. nocamels.com. en-US. 2020-05-10.
  6. Arshavsky-Graham. Sofia. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Paratore. Federico. Scheper. Thomas. Bercovici. Moran. Segal. Ester. 2017-12-22. On Chip Protein Pre-Concentration for Enhancing the Sensitivity of Porous Silicon Biosensors. ACS Sensors. 2. 12. 1767–1773. 10.1021/acssensors.7b00692. 29164872. free.
  7. Urmann. Katharina. Reich. Peggy. Walter. Johanna-Gabriela. Beckmann. Dieter. Segal. Ester. Scheper. Thomas. 2017-09-10. Rapid and label-free detection of protein a by aptamer-tethered porous silicon nanostructures. Journal of Biotechnology. Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Alfred Pühler on the occasion of his 75th birthday. en. 257. 171–177. 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2017.01.005. 28131857. 0168-1656.
  8. Vilensky. Rita. Bercovici. Moran. Segal. Ester. 2015. Oxidized Porous Silicon Nanostructures Enabling Electrokinetic Transport for Enhanced DNA Detection. Advanced Functional Materials. en. 25. 43. 6725–6732. 10.1002/adfm.201502859. 138853415 . 1616-3028.
  9. Urmann. K.. Arshavsky-Graham. S.. Walter. J.. Scheper. T.. Segal. E.. 2016. Whole-cell detection of live lactobacillus acidophilus on aptamer-decorated porous silicon biosensors. Analyst. en. 141. 18. 5432–5440. 10.1039/C6AN00810K. 27381045. 2016Ana...141.5432U. free.
  10. Tenenbaum. Elena. Segal. Ester. 2015-10-26. Optical biosensors for bacteria detection by a peptidomimetic antimicrobial compound. Analyst. en. 140. 22. 7726–7733. 10.1039/C5AN01717C. 26456237. 2015Ana...140.7726T. 1364-5528.
  11. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Shtenberg. Giorgi. Raz. Nitzan. Gazenbeek. Christel. Budding. Dries. Bos. Martine P.. Segal. Ester. 2016-11-30. Porous Silicon-Based Biosensors: Towards Real-Time Optical Detection of Target Bacteria in the Food Industry. Scientific Reports. en. 6. 1. 38099. 10.1038/srep38099. 27901131. 5128872. 2016NatSR...638099M. 2045-2322.
  12. Tenenbaum. Elena. Ben-Dov. Nadav. Segal. Ester. 2015-05-04. Tethered Lipid Bilayers within Porous Si Nanostructures: A Platform for (Optical) Real-Time Monitoring of Membrane-Associated Processes. Langmuir. 31. 18. 5244–5251. 10.1021/acs.langmuir.5b00935. 25902286. 0743-7463.
  13. Krepker. Maksym A.. Segal. Ester. 2013-08-06. Dual-Functionalized Porous Si/Hydrogel Hybrid for Label-Free Biosensing of Organophosphorus Compounds. Analytical Chemistry. 85. 15. 7353–7360. 10.1021/ac4011815. 23795977. 0003-2700.
  14. Shtenberg. Giorgi. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Segal. Ester. 2015-06-15. Detection of trace heavy metal ions in water by nanostructured porous Si biosensors. Analyst. en. 140. 13. 4507–4514. 10.1039/C5AN00248F. 25988196. 2015Ana...140.4507S. 1364-5528.
  15. Shtenberg. Giorgi. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Moscovitz. Oren. Engin. Sinem. Sharon. Michal. Fruk. Ljiljana. Segal. Ester. 2013-02-05. Picking up the Pieces: A Generic Porous Si Biosensor for Probing the Proteolytic Products of Enzymes. Analytical Chemistry. 85. 3. 1951–1956. 10.1021/ac303597w. 23268591. 0003-2700.
  16. Shtenberg. Giorgi. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Engin. Sinem. Sharon. Michal. Fruk. Ljiljana. Segal. Ester. 2012-08-08. DNA-directed immobilization of horseradish peroxidase onto porous SiO2 optical transducers. Nanoscale Research Letters. en. 7. 1. 443. 10.1186/1556-276X-7-443. 1556-276X. 3479059. 22873686. 2012NRL.....7..443S . free .
  17. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Bhunia. Susanta Kumar. Raz. Nitzan. Segal. Ester. Jelinek. Raz. 2018. Synthesis and characterization of a nanostructured porous silicon/carbon dot-hybrid for orthogonal molecular detection. NPG Asia Materials. en. 10. 1. e463. 10.1038/am.2017.233. 1884-4057. free.
  18. Massad‐Ivanir. Naama. Shtenberg. Giorgi. Zeidman. Tal. Segal. Ester. 2010. Construction and Characterization of Porous SiO2/Hydrogel Hybrids as Optical Biosensors for Rapid Detection of Bacteria. Advanced Functional Materials. en. 20. 14. 2269–2277. 10.1002/adfm.201000406. 135765752 . 1616-3028.
  19. Bussi. Yonit. Holtzman. Liran. Shagan. Alona. Segal. Ester. Mizrahi. Boaz. 2017. Light-triggered antifouling coatings for porous silicon optical transducers. Polymers for Advanced Technologies. en. 28. 7. 859–866. 10.1002/pat.3989. 1099-1581.
  20. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Mirsky. Yossi. Nahor. Amit. Edrei. Eitan. Bonanno-Young. Lisa M.. Dov. Nadav Ben. Sa'ar. Amir. Segal. Ester. 2014-07-14. Trap and track: designing self-reporting porous Si photonic crystals for rapid bacteria detection. Analyst. en. 139. 16. 3885–3894. 10.1039/C4AN00364K. 24930570. 2014Ana...139.3885M. 1364-5528.
  21. Method and apparatus for bacterial monitoring. 2019-06-04. US. 10309958. Yissum Research Development Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Ltd.. Technion Research & Development Foundation Ltd.. Sa'ar. Amir. Segal. Ester.
  22. Methods of determining cellular phenotypes. 2019-05-07. US. 10281463. Technion Research & Development Foundation Ltd.. Segal. Ester. Ben-Dov. Nadav.
  23. Leonard. Heidi. Halachmi. Sarel. Ben-Dov. Nadav. Nativ. Ofer. Segal. Ester. 2017-06-27. Unraveling Antimicrobial Susceptibility of Bacterial Networks on Micropillar Architectures Using Intrinsic Phase-Shift Spectroscopy. ACS Nano. 11. 6. 6167–6177. 10.1021/acsnano.7b02217. 28485961. 1936-0851.
  24. Zilony‐Hanin. Neta. Rosenberg. Michal. Richman. Michal. Yehuda. Ronen. Schori. Hadas. Motiei. Menachem. Rahimipour. Shai. Groisman. Alexander. Segal. Ester. Shefi. Orit. 2019. Neuroprotective Effect of Nerve Growth Factor Loaded in Porous Silicon Nanostructures in an Alzheimer's Disease Model and Potential Delivery to the Brain. Small. en. 15. 45. 1904203. 10.1002/smll.201904203. 31482695. 201832298 . 1613-6829.
  25. Tzur-Balter. Adi. Rubinski. Anna. Segal. Ester. 2013. Designing porous silicon-based microparticles as carriers for controlled delivery of mitoxantrone dihydrochloride. Journal of Materials Research. en. 28. 2. 231–239. 10.1557/jmr.2012.299. 2013JMatR..28..231T. 0884-2914.
  26. Rosenberg. Michal. Shilo. Dekel. Galperin. Leonid. Capucha. Tal. Tarabieh. Karim. Rachmiel. Adi. Segal. Ester. 2019. Bone Morphogenic Protein 2-Loaded Porous Silicon Carriers for Osteoinductive Implants. Pharmaceutics. en. 11. 11. 602. 10.3390/pharmaceutics11110602. 31726775. 6920899. free .
  27. Zilony. Neta. Tzur-Balter. Adi. Segal. Ester. Shefi. Orit. 2013-08-26. Bombarding Cancer: Biolistic Delivery of therapeutics using Porous Si Carriers. Scientific Reports. en. 3. 1. 2499. 10.1038/srep02499. 3752615. 23975675. 2013NatSR...3E2499Z. 2045-2322. free.
  28. Tzur-Balter. Adi. Young. Jonathan M.. Bonanno-Young. Lisa M.. Segal. Ester. 2013-09-01. Mathematical modeling of drug release from nanostructured porous Si: Combining carrier erosion and hindered drug diffusion for predicting release kinetics. Acta Biomaterialia. en. 9. 9. 8346–8353. 10.1016/j.actbio.2013.06.007. 23770226. 1742-7061.
  29. Tzur-Balter. Adi. Shatsberg. Zohar. Beckerman. Margarita. Segal. Ester. Artzi. Natalie. 2015-02-11. Mechanism of erosion of nanostructured porous silicon drug carriers in neoplastic tissues. Nature Communications. en. 6. 1. 6208. 10.1038/ncomms7208. 4339882. 25670235. 2015NatCo...6.6208T. 2041-1723. free.
  30. Hollow mineral tubes comprising essential oils and uses thereof. 2016-09-29. WO. 2016151593. Technion Research & Development Foundation Ltd.. Carmel Olefins Ltd.. Segal. Ester. Vaxman. Anita. Shemesh. Rotem. Krepker. Maksym.
  31. Krepker. Maksym. Shemesh. Rotem. Danin Poleg. Yael. Kashi. Yechezkel. Vaxman. Anita. Segal. Ester. 2017-06-01. Active food packaging films with synergistic antimicrobial activity. Food Control. en. 76. 117–126. 10.1016/j.foodcont.2017.01.014. 0956-7135.
  32. Krepker. Max. Zhang. Cong. Nitzan. Nadav. Prinz-Setter. Ofer. Massad-Ivanir. Naama. Olah. Andrew. Baer. Eric. Segal. Ester. 2018. Antimicrobial LDPE/EVOH Layered Films Containing Carvacrol Fabricated by Multiplication Extrusion. Polymers. en. 10. 8. 864. 10.3390/polym10080864. 30960789. 6403741. free .
  33. Shemesh. Rotem. Goldman. Diana. Krepker. Maksym. Danin‐Poleg. Yael. Kashi. Yechezkel. Vaxman. Anita. Segal. Ester. 2015. LDPE/clay/carvacrol nanocomposites with prolonged antimicrobial activity. Journal of Applied Polymer Science. en. 132. 2. 10.1002/app.41261. 1097-4628.
  34. Shemesh. Rotem. Krepker. Maksym. Nitzan. Nadav. Vaxman. Anita. Segal. Ester. 2016-08-01. Active packaging containing encapsulated carvacrol for control of postharvest decay. Postharvest Biology and Technology. en. 118. 175–182. 10.1016/j.postharvbio.2016.04.009. 0925-5214.
  35. Web site: Pittcon. 2017-06-19. ACS Division of Analytical Chemistry. en-US. 2020-05-10.
  36. Web site: Announcing the 2019 Advances in Measurement Science Lectureship Award Winners. 2019-01-11. ACS Axial. en-US. 2020-05-11.
  37. Web site: ליידי גלובס מציג: 50 המשפיעות 2019 - פרופ' נירית דודוביץ. גלובס. he. 2020-05-10.
  38. Web site: NanoPack's Active Food Packaging Shows Impressive Results in Extending Food Shelf Life: (EUFIC). www.eufic.org. 2020-05-10.
  39. Web site: Home. Care. Update. NanoPack. en-US. 2020-05-10.
  40. Web site: Engineering meets medicine for maximum impact. Society. Jennifer Frey-American Technion. www.timesofisrael.com. en-US. 2020-05-10.

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