Nathalie Q. Balaban, Ph.D., is a professor of physics at Racah Institute of Physics, Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Her research interests focus on the development of experimental and theoretical approaches to the study of single-cell heterogeneity and the determination of its role in disease and evolution. She has pioneered the use of microfluidic devices and automated setups to study quantitatively the heterogeneous response of bacteria to antibiotics. Her work revealed the evolution of tolerance to antibiotics and the subsequent evolution of resistance, both in vitro and in patients.

Balaban has won the Krill Prize from the Wolf Foundation. She is an elected member of the European Academy of Microbiology, a member of the Israel Physics Society and EMBO and a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. Balaban co-founded the Scholar-Teacher Program, an initiative for improving science teaching in high schools.