# ARA-290

> An 11-amino-acid, non-erythropoietic fragment of erythropoietin that keeps EPO’s tissue-protective, anti-inflammatory activity without raising red blood cells.

- Also known as: Cibinetide, pHBSP, Pyroglutamate helix B surface peptide
- Class: Healing & Repair
- FDA approved: No
- Canonical page: https://americanpeptide.com/catalog/ara-290

## Overview

ARA-290 (cibinetide) is a synthetic 11-amino-acid peptide taken from the helix-B surface of erythropoietin (EPO). It was designed to separate EPO’s tissue-protective and anti-inflammatory effects from its blood-building ones: ARA-290 activates the so-called innate repair receptor without stimulating red-cell production, so it carries none of EPO’s thrombotic risk. It has been studied mainly for neuropathic pain and tissue repair, most notably in sarcoidosis-related small-fiber neuropathy.

ARA-290 is what you get when you ask which part of erythropoietin does the healing. EPO — the red-cell hormone catalogued just above — turns out to have two distinct jobs: it builds red blood cells, and, through a different receptor, it protects and repairs injured tissue and calms inflammation. Those activities are separable, and ARA-290 (cibinetide) is the 11-residue piece of EPO’s helix-B surface engineered to trigger only the second one.

Because it does not act on the classic EPO receptor that raises red-cell mass, ARA-290 avoids the clotting and blood-thickening dangers that make EPO risky, while retaining EPO’s tissue-protective, anti-inflammatory signaling through the innate repair receptor. Its most developed research is in small-fiber neuropathy — including the neuropathic pain of sarcoidosis — along with broader work in tissue repair and metabolic inflammation. It carries an N-terminal pyroglutamate that improves its stability. It is investigational and not FDA-approved.

## Mechanism

Selective agonist at the innate repair receptor — a heterocomplex of the EPO receptor and the β-common receptor (CD131) — driving tissue-protective and anti-inflammatory signaling without erythropoiesis.

## Chemistry

| Property | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Molecular formula | C51H84N16O21 |
| Molecular weight | 1257.3 Da |
| CAS number | 1208243-50-8 |
| PubChem CID | [91810664](https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/91810664) |

## Sequence

```
pGlu-Glu-Gln-Leu-Glu-Arg-Ala-Leu-Asn-Ser-Ser
```

## Research areas

Studied in: Neuropathic pain, Small-fiber neuropathy, Tissue protection, Anti-inflammatory / repair.

## Key research

- Non-erythropoietic by design — activates EPO’s tissue-protective innate repair receptor without raising red-cell mass, avoiding EPO’s thrombotic risk.
- Neuropathic pain — the most-developed indication; studied in sarcoidosis-associated small-fiber neuropathy.
- Tissue protection & anti-inflammation — retains EPO’s repair and immunomodulatory signaling, examined across injury and metabolic-inflammation models.
- Derived from EPO helix-B — an 11-residue surface fragment with an N-terminal pyroglutamate for stability.
- Investigational — not FDA-approved.

## Storage, handling & synthesis

**Synthesis.** ARA-290 (cibinetide) is an 11-residue linear peptide with an N-terminal pyroglutamate and a free C-terminus, taken from the helix-B surface of erythropoietin. It is made by routine solid-phase synthesis; forming the pyroglutamate terminus correctly and ordinary deletion-sequence removal are the main quality steps.

## FAQs

### What is ARA-290?

ARA-290 (cibinetide) is a synthetic 11-amino-acid fragment of erythropoietin that triggers EPO’s tissue-protective, anti-inflammatory signaling without stimulating red-blood-cell production.

### How is it different from EPO?

EPO both builds red cells and protects tissue; ARA-290 keeps only the tissue-protective, anti-inflammatory activity, so it does not carry EPO’s clotting and blood-thickening risks.

### What is it studied for?

Chiefly neuropathic pain and small-fiber neuropathy — including in sarcoidosis — plus broader tissue-protection and anti-inflammatory research.

### Is ARA-290 approved?

No — it is investigational and not FDA-approved. This page is a research and educational reference.

## Latest research

Recent trials and publications mentioning ARA-290, pulled automatically from ClinicalTrials.gov and PubMed (unfiltered search results, refreshed daily).

### Recent trials

- [The Use of ARA290 for the Treatment of Diabetic Macular Oedema](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06626971) — TERMINATED · PHASE2 · NCT06626971
- [Study of Efficacy of ARA 290 on Corneal Nerve Fiber Density and Neuropathic Symptoms of Subjects With Sarcoidosis](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT02039687) — COMPLETED · PHASE2 · NCT02039687
- [ARA290 in T2D (Effects of ARA 290, an Erythropoietin Analogue) in Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes)](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT01933529) — UNKNOWN · PHASE2 · NCT01933529
- [Cognitive and Neural Effects of ARA290](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT02070783) — COMPLETED · PHASE1, PHASE2 · NCT02070783

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Source: AmericanPeptide.com — https://americanpeptide.com/catalog/ara-290
Data license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Attribution: AmericanPeptide.com.
Research reference only — computational and educational content, not medical advice.