Israel
Israeli scientists make major breakthrough in tackling Motor Neurone Disease
The development can halt the condition’s degenerative symptoms, and even potentially reverse the damage it causes
November 24, 2025 11:23
The development can halt the condition’s degenerative symptoms, and even potentially reverse the damage it causes
November 24, 2025 11:23Israeli researchers have made a pioneering breakthrough in the treatment of motor neurone disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the fatal neurodegenerative condition, which was brought to the world’s attention by 2014’s viral Ice Bucket Challenge.
A new therapeutic technique, developed by a team at Tel Aviv University, uses Ribonucleic acid (RNA), a vital molecule used in most of the body’s biological functions.
The team was able to identify a particular RNA strand that can combat the degenerative effects of MND/ALS, specifically the damage to nerve cells which leads to loss of motor function in patients.
"When we added a specific RNA molecule to human cells and animal models for ALS, the nerve cells stopped degenerating and even regenerated”, Professor Eran Perlson told The Times of Israel.
Perlson’s team also worked with scientists at Ben-Gurion University and the Weizmann Institute on the project, which was a continuation of his laboratory’s previous work.
Their previous work had identified a protein, known as TDP-43, which forms toxic clusters on nerve cells in MND patients, but helps to regulate protein-making in healthy people.
This most recent study identified the agent that causes TDP-43 to go rogue, a different molecule called microRNA-126. When there is not enough microRNA-126 in the body, too much TDP-43 is produced, which can cause debilitating symptoms
The researchers found that adding extra microRNA-126 to tissues from MND patients and to mice injected with the disease was able to mitigate and even reverse the neurodegenerative effects.
Next, they want to take their findings and apply them to clinical trials. If successful, it would represent remarkable headway for a disease that has historically been extremely difficult to treat.
"We wanted to get to the root of the matter of what causes ALS to enable the development of effective drugs for this incurable disease,” Perlson added.
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