Boston, MA – October 8, 2026 – Modulight Biotherapeutics congratulates the 2026 Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine, recognized for discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics, a technology that has transformed neuroscience. It enabled researchers to switch defined types of neurons on and off to understand how they contribute to brain function. The prize comes as optogenetics moves from the laboratory into medicine, and Modulight is proud to be part of that shift.

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For Ofer Yizhar, Modulight's scientific co-founder and Chief Scientist, and a professor at the Weizmann Institute of Science, the moment has particular significance. Yizhar contributed to the development of next-generation optogenetic technologies during his postdoctoral research and has spent much of his career using them to study how neural circuits drive behavior and disease.

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"Optogenetics gave us the ability to control specific neural circuits with extraordinary precision, opening an entirely new way to understand the brain," said Yizhar. "Having been part of the field during its formative years, seeing this work recognized with the Nobel Prize is deeply meaningful. At Modulight, we are pursuing one of the field’s next frontiers: turning that control into therapies for patients."

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At the core of Modulight's platform is eOPN3, a light-sensitive G protein-coupled receptor developed in Yizhar's laboratory at the Weizmann Institute. When delivered to specific neurons and activated by light, eOPN3 turns down the signals those cells send to their neighbors. Paired with programmable light delivery, it is designed to reversibly quiet the pathological neural signaling that drives symptoms such as pain, while minimizing effects on surrounding neural function.

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Modulight is initially focusing on trigeminal neuralgia, a severe pain disorder involving a defined neural pathway, while exploring the platform’s potential in other neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy.

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"Neurological therapies often force a tradeoff between efficacy and specificity," said Yotam Eldar, MD, CEO of Modulight. "Our goal is to overcome that tradeoff by intervening precisely where pathological signals originate. In trigeminal neuralgia, for example, our approach is designed to selectively dial down the signals responsible for severe pain while preserving normal sensation. For patients whose conditions remain inadequately treated, we believe this could offer a fundamentally new therapeutic option."

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Optogenetic therapies for vision restoration have already advanced into clinical development. Modulight is pursuing a complementary direction, applying inhibitory optogenetics to neurological disorders beyond the eye, and is advancing its platform through preclinical development.