Pavel Itsikson – Павел Итсиксон.HEIC
Dr. Pavel Itsikson
Dr. Itsikson earned a B.Sc. in Biology from Bar-Ilan University, Faculty of Life Sciences, in Ramat Gan, Israel (1993–1997).

He continued his academic journey with M.Sc. studies in Clinical Embryology at the same faculty (1997–2000), where he conducted research and wrote a thesis titled: “Natural antioxidant (NAO) and ROS influence on mammalian spermatozoa.”

From 2001 to 2010, he pursued his Ph.D. at the Goldyne Savad Institute of Gene Therapy, Hadassah University Hospital, affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His doctoral thesis focused on: “Neural specification of human embryonic stem cells.”

He began his professional career in 1999 as a clinical embryologist at the IVF Unit, Barzilay Medical Center in Ashkelon, Israel. Between 2001 and 2005, he also worked as a locum embryologist at the Israeli Fertility Center in Rishon Lezion, where he was later appointed IVF Lab Director (2005–2008).

From 2008 to 2024, he led the IVF laboratory at Assuta Medical Center, one of Israel’s most renowned clinics. In 2024, he transitioned to the Medica Elisha Hospital in Haifa, where he currently serves as a Senior Embryologist.

He is fluent in English, Russian, Hebrew, and Ukrainian, and is widely recognized in the field for his contributions to embryology and reproductive medicine.

His academic work has been published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, with a focus on embryonic stem cells, neural development, sperm morphology, and advancements in fertility technologies.

He is a co-author of landmark studies including: Neural progenitors from human embryonic stem cells (Nat. Biotechnol., 2001); Stable genetic modification of hESCs by lentiviral vectors (Mol. Ther, 2003); Derivation of neural precursors in the presence of noggin (Mol Cell Neurosci, 2005); Neural differentiation of human ES cells (Curr Protoc Cell Biol, 2007); The role of FGF-signaling in early neural specification of hESCs (Dev Biol, 2010); A novel solution for freezing small numbers of spermatozoa (Hum Reprod, 2018).

In addition to his clinical work, he remains actively engaged in scientific research, contributing to innovation in the fields of reproductive biology and embryonic development.