Jonathan Gressel is now an emeritus professor at Weizmann Institute of Science. His interests are to see how plant sciences can contribute to world food and fuel securities, with collaborations throughout the developing world. He studied metabolic controls, especially by anti-metabolites and pesticides, and the evolution of resistance. He conceived and helped develop a system to control parasitic Striga (witchweed) using herbicide-treated crop seeds, which is commercialized throughout Africa.

He was Chief Scientist of TransAlgae, Ltd., a company devoted to transgenically domesticating micro algae as a source of high protein animal feed and biofuel, cultivated using seawater and industrial carbon dioxide. He has also developed genetic engineering biosafety measures to mitigate transgene movement.

Author of >320 scientific papers and book chapters and author/editor of nine books dealing with these issues. He was awarded the 2010 “Israel Prize” for his agricultural research, which is the highest accolade given by the Israeli Government.