BONDI, ARON

BONDI, ARON (1906–1997), Israeli agricultural nutritionist and biochemist, born and educated in Vienna. He studied chemistry and physics, earning his Ph.D. under F. Feigel in chemistry (1929). He completed postdoctoral studies in organic chemistry under D.E. Bergman in Berlin (1929–32) and conducted research in the inorganic chemistry laboratory of Feigel in Vienna (1932–34). At the invitation of Chaim *Arlosoroff, he joined the Agricultural Research Station, Reḥovot (1934). Bondi established animal nutrition studies in Ereẓ Israel. From 1946 until 1974 he taught animal nutrition at the Faculty of Agriculture and headed the department of animal nutrition from 1940 to 1959. Bondi joined the faculty of the Hebrew University, Jerusalem (1949), becoming professor of animal nutrition and biochemistry (1961) and headed the department of animal nutrition (1958–74). In 1984 he was awarded the Israel Prize for agriculture. Bondi's publications encompass 67 years (1929–96), starting with the study of iodine reactivity in organic solvents and ending with the importance of amino acids in layer chicken nutrition. Beside his research in analytical chemistry, phosphorus, copper, iron, and racemization reactions, his studies comprise many aspects of agricultural biochemistry, mainly animal nutrition. The studies encompass digestibility of cattle fodder, feeding surveys of milk cattle, rumen reactions, feed digestibility and absorption, vitamin availability for farm animals and biological activities, antioxidant activities, toxic agents for the farm animals, proteolytic enzymes (in vivo and in vitro studies) and their inhibitors, insect biochemistry, legume saponins, and protein metabolism in farm animals. His Hebrew textbook on animal nutrition (1982) was also published in Spanish.

[Yosef Dror (2^nd ed.)]