These effects were again Sarm1 specific because induction of npp tumours in a second independent mouse model based on CRISPR–Cas9-mediated Sarm1 gene knockout39 also resulted in more-diffuse terminal tumours with extended survival and preservation of motor function relative to background-matched controls (Fig. 5p,q and Extended Data Fig. 10c,d). Here, SARM1 is linked to neoplasm.