Yarden Opatowsky, PhD

Yarden Opatowsky, PhD is an ICRF Project Grant recipient at Bar-Ilan University. Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy (CIPN) is a side effect of many cancer treatments. Its symptoms include numbness, tingling, and pain in the hands and feet, which can persist for years. Currently, there are no effective treatments. Dr. Opatowsky is studying the SARM1 protein as a potential target for CIPN treatment and has found that mice that do not produce SARM1 are resistant to CIPN, without showing any other apparent impediments. The Opatowsky lab will develop and test SARM1-inhibiting compounds with the ultimate goal of developing therapeutics that prevent CIPN. Not only will this potentially improve cancer patients’ quality of life, but may also effectively enhance prognosis by enabling increased dosages of chemotherapy agents that may otherwise be limited due to side effects.

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