[:en]<h4 style="font-weight: 400;">In a world-first for regenerative medicine, surgeons in Israel will soon implant a bioengineered, personalized human spinal cord into a paralyzed patient – using tissue grown from the patient’s <a href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/">own cells</a>. The unprecedented procedure aims to enable the patient, who today relies on a wheelchair, to stand up and walk again. Announced by Tel Aviv University and Israeli biotech startup Matricelf, this landmark effort is more than just a medical experiment; it’s a powerful illustration of Israel’s innovation ecosystem at work, bridging cutting-edge academia and industry to transform lives on a global stage.</h4> <h4 style="font-weight: 400;">“This is undoubtedly a matter of national pride,” says <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Professor Tal Dvir</a> of Tel Aviv University, who led the research team. “The technology was developed here in Israel… and from the very beginning it was clear to us that the first-ever surgery would be performed in Israel, with an Israeli patient”. Indeed, Israel’s Health Ministry gave special approval for “compassionate use” trials in a handful of paralyzed patients, ensuring that the very first human to receive this implant will be treated at home in <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-bid-to-cure-paralysis-israeli-researchers-plan-innovative-spinal-cord-implant/">Israel</a>. For a country often dubbed the “Startup Nation,” this moment signifies a new chapter – one where Israeli science turns early lab breakthroughs into hopeful therapies, with the world watching.</h4> <div> <h2><span lang="EN">How to Grow a New Spinal Cord from Patient’s Cells</span></h2> </div> <h4 style="font-weight: 400;"><em>Illustration: Tel Aviv University researchers outline the envisioned procedure for treating paralysis with a personalized spinal cord implant, grown from the patient’s own cells (Tel Aviv University/Matricelf). </em>What sounds like science fiction is becoming reality. Israeli scientists have created a process to regrow a spinal cord from a <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">patient’s own cells</a>:</h4> <ol> <li> <h4><strong data-start="537" data-end="557"><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Cell Collection</a>: </strong>Doctors take a small blood and fat sample.</h4> </li> <li> <h4><strong data-start="609" data-end="627"><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Reprogramming</a>: </strong>The cells are turned into stem cells able to become any tissue.</h4> </li> <li> <h4><strong data-start="700" data-end="722"><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Scaffold Creation</a>: </strong>Molecules from the patient’s fat are used to make a hydrogel scaffold, minimizing rejection risk.</h4> </li> <li> <h4><strong data-start="829" data-end="852"><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Tissue Engineering</a>: </strong>Stem cells grow in the hydrogel, forming spinal cord tissue with neurons.</h4> </li> <li> <h4><strong data-start="935" data-end="952"><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Implantation</a>: </strong>Surgeons replace scar tissue at the injury site with the engineered cord, hoping it reconnects signals.</h4> </li> </ol> <h4>In preclinical trials, <strong data-start="1091" data-end="1133">80–100% of paralyzed rats walked again</strong> after receiving the implant <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">[2]</a><a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-bid-to-cure-paralysis-israeli-researchers-plan-innovative-spinal-cord-implant/">[3]</a>. <em data-start="1170" data-end="1241">“Our goal is to help paralyzed patients rise from their wheelchairs,”</em> says <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">Prof. Tal Dvir</a>, who leads the project.</h4> <h4 style="font-weight: 400;" data-start="1293" data-end="1559">The first human procedure, approved under compassionate use, will treat one patient at a time. Regulators have authorized up to eight <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">participants</a>. If successful, the first implant could change not only one life, but the entire outlook on treating paralysis.</h4> <div> <h2><span lang="EN">A New Hope for Paralyzed Patients</span></h2> </div> <h4>For the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><strong data-start="155" data-end="186">15 million people worldwide</strong><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>living with <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-bid-to-cure-paralysis-israeli-researchers-plan-innovative-spinal-cord-implant/">spinal cord injuries</a>, the stakes are enormous. A severed spine has long meant permanent paralysis — damaged nerves do not regenerate, and scar tissue often blocks any chance of <a href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/">reconnection</a>. Medicine has offered little beyond wheelchairs, prosthetics, or rehabilitation to improve quality of life.</h4> <span style="font-size: 1.25em;">The Israeli team’s approach is different: it seeks not just to manage symptoms, but to</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><strong style="font-size: 1.25em;" data-start="595" data-end="664">heal the injury by regrowing the patient’s own spinal cord tissue</strong><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">.</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><em style="font-size: 1.25em;" data-start="666" data-end="738">“We are hopeful that the results in humans will be just as promising,”</em><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><a style="font-size: 1.25em;" href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">says Prof. Tal Dvir</a><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">. Even partial recovery - a return of movement or sensation - would change the outlook for patients and families who had lost hope. </span><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">A key to success is personalization. By using each patient’s own cells, the risk of immune rejection is minimized, making the body far more likely to </span><a style="font-size: 1.25em;" href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/">accept the implant</a><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">.</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><em style="font-size: 1.25em;" data-start="1071" data-end="1117">“Our approach… eliminates key safety risks,”</em><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">explains </span><a style="font-size: 1.25em;" href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/">Matricelf CEO Gil Hakim</a><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">. In this model, the patient is both donor and recipient - a powerful example of</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><strong style="font-size: 1.25em;" data-start="1234" data-end="1259">personalized medicine</strong><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 1.25em;"> </span><span style="font-size: 1.25em;">and part of a wider regenerative trend toward tailor-made therapies.</span> <div> <h2><span lang="EN">Part of a Bigger Trend in Israeli Biotech</span></h2> </div> <div> <h4 data-start="158" data-end="496">This spinal cord implant is ambitious, but not isolated. It reflects a decade of Israeli breakthroughs in<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><strong data-start="264" data-end="306">regenerative and personalized medicine</strong>. In 2019, Prof. Tal Dvir’s team at Tel Aviv University 3D-printed the world’s first tiny heart using a <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-scientists-unveil-worlds-first-3d-printed-heart-with-human-tissue/">patient’s own cells -</a> a milestone that foreshadowed today’s spinal cord project.</h4> </div> <h4 data-start="498" data-end="1010">Other startups have pushed similar frontiers. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/israels-bonus-says-lab-grown-bones-successfully-transplanted-idUSKBN13U1QV/">Bonus BioGroup</a> grew bone grafts from patients’ fat cells and transplanted them back - the first such procedure worldwide. Across Israel, labs are testing lab-grown corneas, personalized cancer vaccines, and more. This wave is powered by collaboration: universities, hospitals, and startups working side by side, with regulators showing unusual agility. In this case, the Health Ministry approved <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">compassionate-use surgery</a>, balancing caution with innovation.</h4> <div> <h4 data-start="1012" data-end="1177">Such efforts reveal how Israel’s<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><strong data-start="1045" data-end="1101">“Startup Nation” is evolving into a “Healing Nation”</strong><span class="apple-converted-space"> -</span> where high-tech meets biotech to tackle the hardest medical challenges.</h4> </div> <div> <h2><span lang="EN">A Milestone for Global Medicine</span></h2> </div> <div> <h4 data-start="1222" data-end="1443">If a paralyzed patient soon walks thanks to a lab-grown spinal cord, the impact will be global. Success would not only offer hope but could define a new standard of care and spark an industry in spinal <a href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/">regeneration</a>.</h4> </div> <h4 data-start="1445" data-end="1781">It also highlights Israel’s outsized role in global health. The spinal cord project began in a university lab, was scaled by a startup, approved by regulators, and is now inspiring the world. For Israel Valley Santé, it exemplifies our mission: showing how bold ideas in Israel can bridge science, entrepreneurship, and global impact.</h4> <h4 data-start="1783" data-end="2014">Whether the first patient walks again or not, a once-unthinkable door has opened. <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347">This is more than medicine</a> - it’s a story of imagination, perseverance, and the innovative spirit Israel Valley Santé is here to celebrate.</h4> <h4><strong>Sources:</strong></h4> <ul> <li data-start="195" data-end="409"><strong data-start="195" data-end="226">[1] Tel Aviv University / AFTAU</strong> – <em data-start="229" data-end="285">“Surgeons to implant spinal cord bioengineered at TAU”</em> (Aug. 20, 2025) 👉 <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.aftau.org/news_item/surgeons-to-implant-spinal-cord-bioengineered-at-tau/" target="_new" rel="noopener" data-start="309" data-end="407">Read here</a></li> <li data-start="413" data-end="608"><strong data-start="413" data-end="450">[2] EurekAlert! (Tel Aviv University)</strong> – <em data-start="453" data-end="521">“The first human spinal cord repair using the patient’s own cells”</em> (Aug. 20, 2025) 👉 <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095347" target="_new" rel="noopener" data-start="545" data-end="606">Read here</a></li> <li data-start="612" data-end="879"><strong data-start="612" data-end="631">[3] Times of Israel</strong> – <em data-start="634" data-end="729">“In world 1st bid to cure paralysis, Israeli team gears up to implant innovative spinal cord”</em> (Aug. 21, 2025) 👉 <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-bid-to-cure-paralysis-israeli-researchers-plan-innovative-spinal-cord-implant/" target="_new" rel="noopener" data-start="545" data-end="606">Read here </a></li> <li data-start="612" data-end="879"><strong data-start="883" data-end="902">[4] Times of Israel</strong> – <em data-start="905" data-end="983">“Israeli scientists unveil world’s first 3D-printed heart with human tissue”</em> (2019) 👉 <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-scientists-unveil-worlds-first-3d-printed-heart-with-human-tissue/" target="_new" rel="noopener" data-start="998" data-end="1115">Read here</a></li> <li data-start="612" data-end="879"><strong data-start="1121" data-end="1132">[5] Reuters</strong> – <em data-start="1135" data-end="1200">“Israel’s Bonus says lab-grown bones successfully transplanted”</em> (Dec. 5, 2016) 👉 <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.reuters.com/article/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/israels-bonus-says-lab-grown-bones-successfully-transplanted-idUSKBN13U1QV/" target="_new" rel="noopener" data-start="1223" data-end="1379">Read here</a></li> </ul>[:]