Leslie Lobel (deceased 2018)[1] was an American-born Israeli virologist and physician at Ben-Gurion University in Israel, where he was a leading researcher attempting to develop a vaccine and cure for infectious diseases, primarily Ebola.[2] He was Chair of their Department of Virology and Developmental Genetics, and Vice Chair of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics.[citation needed]
Partnering with both the U.S. military and the Uganda Virus Research Institute, his focus since moving to Israel in 2002, had been on isolating human monoclonal antibodies as a drug which could be manufactured to give people immunity against a number of infectious diseases. With his co-investigator, Dr. Victoria Yavelsky, he had hoped to create a "passive" vaccine which would offer protection immediately after being given.[3]