ARA-290

Status

No approved product. No approved labeling. Studied under orphan designation but not approved.

What it is

An eleven-amino-acid fragment of erythropoietin studied for neuropathic pain, without the blood effects.

What published research measured

Derived from a region of erythropoietin that engages the innate repair receptor rather than the receptor that drives red blood cell production, so it was designed to separate the tissue-protective signaling from the hematopoietic effect. Small randomized trials in sarcoidosis-associated small fiber neuropathy reported improvements in corneal nerve fiber measures and in patient-reported pain. The trials are small, and results in one neuropathy population do not transfer to another.

Source

Culver DA et al. 2017 — Cibinetide Improves Corneal Nerve Fiber Abundance in Patients With Sarcoidosis-Associated Small Nerve Fiber Loss and… · Collino M et al. 2015 — Flipping the molecular switch for innate protection and repair of tissues: Long-lasting effects of a non-erythropoiet… · Brines M et al. 2018 — Corneal nerve fiber size adds utility to the diagnosis and assessment of therapeutic response in patients with small…

Sources

• Half-life source for ARA-290
• CDC handling principles
• EU clinical-trial results