Esther Silberberg, PhD Student

Hebrew University

Esther Silberberg is a research scientist exploring the pathobiome of Parkinson’s Disease and its interplay with the immune system. With a strong background in immunology and molecular genetics from her B.Sc. in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Haifa, and research experience at the Weizmann Institute of Science, she focuses on the Pathogen Hypothesis of Neurodegeneration—the concept that microbial agents may initiate or exacerbate neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s. Her research combines both human brain samples and animal models to study Parkinson's-associated protein alpha-synuclein in the context of neuroimmune functions. She is particularly interested in how microbial pathogens may initiate or accelerate neurodegenerative cascades and is working to establish a definitive link between pathogenic infection, innate immunity, and Parkinson's Disease pathogenesis. Through this multidisciplinary lens, she aims to uncover novel therapeutic angles and better understand how microbial invasion, immune recognition, and protein aggregation converge in the aging brain.