Prof. Snait Tamir

Nutrition & Human Health

Professor

Managment

Research Group Leader

phD

Phone

972-4-6953561

972-4-6944980

snait@telhai.ac.il

Research Interests:

The microbial communities that colonize different regions of the human gut influence many aspects of health. Recent research has provided strong evidence for the role of the commensal gut microbiota in brain function and behavior. Bidirectional communication between gut microbiota and components of the gut–brain axis influence normal homeostasis and may contribute to risk of disease.

Diet is considered among the most crucial factors, which have an impact on microbial community composition from infancy to old age. Thus, dietary interventions may have the potential to modulate stress-response and overall behavior associated with gut–brain axis dysfunction and should open up new possibilities for health manipulation.

Among our main interests are:

Investigating the effects of personalized, diet-induced alterations in microbiota on sleep quality in older adults.
Exploring the associations between gut microbiota and geriatric depression, and the potential of a nutrition induced microbiota alterations diet, aimed to improve quality of life and wellbeing in older adults.
Studying the effect and\or involvement of microbial metabolites on sleep, depression and ADHD.
In addition, we are involved in two more studies dealing with microbiome. One, which deals with probiotic treatment for students with attention deficiency disorder, and the second, is concerned with the effect of probiotic supplementation on the ability to perform intense endurance exercises among master's runners and competitive cyclists.

Education
Ph.D. 1991, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Biochemistry and Human Nutrition, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Academic and research positions
1992 - 1995 Postdoctoral research at the Department of Chemistry, Division of Toxicology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA. USA.
1998 - 2003 Research associate, Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Compounds, MIGAL.
2001 - 2002 Head of the Biotechnology and Enviromental Science Dept. Tel Hai College.
1999 - 2005 Head of the Nutrition Science Department, Tel Hai College.
Since 2005 Head of Human Health and Nutritional Science Laboratory, MIGAL- Galilee Research Institute.
2006 - 2010 Dean of Sciences and Technology Faculty, Tel Hai College.
2013-2015 M.Sc Program Director, Dept. of Nutrition Sciences of the Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Tel Hai College.

Since 2018 Vice President of Academic Affairs, Tel Hai College>

Other Activity and Service
Since 1996 Clinical dietitian.

Scientific Publications

Disrupted gut harmony in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Dysbiosis and decreased short-chain fatty acids

Steckler R.; Magzal F.; Kokot M.; Walkowiak J.; Tamir S. .

Scientific Publications

Disrupted gut harmony in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Dysbiosis and decreased short-chain fatty acids

Microbiota Metabolite Profiles and Dietary Intake in Older Individuals with Insomnia of Short vs. Normal Sleep Duration

Gestational diabetes is driven by microbiota-induced inflammation months before diagnosis

A personalized diet intervention improves depression symptoms and changes microbiota and metabolite profiles among community-dwelling older adults

Responses of the human gut microbiota to physiologically digested insect powders or isolated chitin thereof

Variation in Gut Microbiota Composition is Associated with Sleep Quality and Cognitive Performance in Older Adults with Insomnia

Increased physical activity correlates with gut microbiota composition and reduces short-chain fatty acid concentrations in older adults with insomnia

Associations between fecal short-chain fatty acids and sleep continuity in older adults with insomnia symptoms

Allergic microbial signature in IgE-mediated food allergies

Long-lived weight-reduced ?MUPA mice show higher and longer maternal-dependent postnatal leptin surge

The effect of caffeine on energy balance

5,6-?-DHTL, a stable metabolite of arachidonic acid, is a potential EDHF that mediates microvascular dilation.

In-vivo oxidized albumin? a pro-inflammatory agent in hypoalbuminemia.

Glabridin, an isoflavan from licorice root, up-regulates paraoxonase 2 expression under hyperglycemia and protects it from oxidation

5,6-?-DHTL, a stable metabolite of arachidonic acid, is a potential substrate for paraoxonase 1

Gender effect on vascular responsiveness after bariatric surgery

The Effect of ?In Favor of Myself?: Preventive Program to Enhance Positive Self and Body Image among Adolescents

Human atherosclerotic plaque lipid extract impairs the antioxidant defense capacity of monocytes

Isothiocyanates inhibit psoriasis-related proinflammatory factors in human skin

A decrease in VEGF and inflammatory markers is associated with diabetic proliferative retinopathy

Gender effect on vascular inflammation following bariatric surgery

Mutual interaction of special phytoestrogenic compounds, their synthetic carboxy-derivatives and the less-calcemic vitamin D analog activities in human derived female cultured osteoblasts

Endothelial dysfunction is reversible in helicobacter pylori-positive subjects

Glabridin, a phytoestrogen from licorice root, up-regulates the intracellular antioxidant defense mechanism under glucose stress

Human atherosclerotic plaque lipid extract promotes expression of proinflammatory factors in human monocytes and macrophage-like cells