Asael Roichman was born in Jerusalem and later moved to the village of Kochav-Hashachar. Science was his hobby from an early age, and he studied biology as a major in high school. After a period of yeshiva studies and then military service in the prestigious 13th battalion of the Golani brigade, he began his undergraduate studies in life sciences at Bar-Ilan University and planned to continue with research in the field.

Walking off with the Rector’s Prize for Outstanding Students every year, Asael graduated from Bar-Ilan summa cum laude. He launched his Master’s degree while still in the third year of his BSc, working in Prof. Haim Cohen’s Molecular Mechanism of Aging lab through the direct MSc program for the best undergraduates in science.  He finished his MSc magna cum laude, went on to do his doctoral research in Haim Cohen’s lab, and was awarded a graduate fellowship for outstanding students in the first year of his PhD studies.

Under the supervision of Prof. Cohen, Asael is investigating lifespan and metabolism, specifically how these are affected by the family of proteins called sirtuins. Using the SIRT6-tg mouse model in one of his projects, he found that over-expression of the protein SIRT6 protects against various age-related disorders such as glucose intolerance, adipose inflammation, and the loss of active behaviors. Asael contributed to a study published in Cell Reports, showing the mechanisms that allow SIRT6 to provide protection against the physiological damage of obesity. Asael’s goal is to further understand how the sirtuins exert their beneficial effects on healthspan and lifespan. To answer his questions, he is making use of new mouse models that he’s developed.

In addition to his research, Asael heads the exercise groups and is a teaching assistant in the undergraduate course, Biochemistry B.