Research Lab Areas
Neuronal cell death, dendrite and axonal degeneration are active, tightly controlled processes of self-destruction. These processes take place normally during development of the nervous system and abnormally in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer, Parkinson and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
In our lab, we seek to understand the molecular processes that drive these neurons, axons and dendrites to degeneration and their unique selective vulnerability in different diseases. Answering this fundamental question will reveal therapeutic targets for degenerative disorders and provide insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms of neuronal, axonal and dendrites degeneration and survival.
Scholar Profile
Neurons are highly specialized cells that have a demanding role: they must function effectively for the entire lifespan of an organism, which can be decades or even longer in humans. Despite their longevity, some neurons eventually degenerate. This raises fundamental questions about how neurons survive for so long, how they age, and what causes some of them to die. Maya Maor-Nof’s goal in her lab at the Technion—Israel Institute of Technology’s biology department is to systematically define the key regulators of neuronal degeneration, with the aim of understanding the mechanism of neurodegenerative diseases. By focusing on chromatin and gene regulatory networks, this research holds promise for uncovering new therapeutic targets that could potentially halt or reverse neuronal loss.
During her doctoral studies in the Department of Biomolecular Sciences at Weizmann Institute of Science, Dr. Maor-Nof studied the mechanism underlying the process of neuronal degeneration and axonal pruning in the development of the peripheral nervous system, combining biological questions with computational approaches.
Her postdoctoral research at Stanford School of Medicine’s Department of Genetics was supported by the European Molecular Biology Organization, the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation, and the SSSI-Muscular Dystrophy Association. Dr. Maor-Nof applied genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, molecular and cellular approaches to elucidate the mechanism underling neuronal cell death and axonal degeneration.
Dr. Maor-Nof believes in getting students excited about science. She has taught youth at risk and underrepresented minorities in Jewish and Arab high schools in Israel.