The Sunlight Experiment

Supplement Monograph

ARA-290 (Cibinetide)

PeptideHealing

ARA-290 (cibinetide) is an 11-amino-acid erythropoietin-derived peptide studied in early trials for small-fibre neuropathy and inflammation; it is an investigational drug, not an approved supplement.

Work in progress Updated July 2026

What Is ARA-290?

ARA-290 (cibinetide) is an 11-amino-acid peptide derived from a non-erythropoietic region of erythropoietin (EPO), designed to signal through the innate repair receptor without stimulating red-blood-cell production. It has been studied as an investigational drug for neuropathic pain and tissue repair, most notably in small-fibre neuropathy associated with sarcoidosis and diabetes. Unlike most peptides in this batch, it has some randomised human trial data — though early-stage and small.

Evidence

In a randomised, double-blind pilot study of 22 sarcoidosis patients with small-fibre neuropathy, intravenous ARA-290 (2 mg, three times weekly for 4 weeks) significantly improved small-fibre-neuropathy symptom scores and pain/physical-functioning dimensions of the SF-36 versus placebo, and appeared safe 1Reference 1Heij L et al et al. · 2012RCTSafety and efficacy of ARA 290 in sarcoidosis patients with symptoms of small fiber neuropathy: a randomized, double-blind pilot study — randomised/RCTView study →. Later small phase-2 work reported improvements in neuropathic symptoms and corneal nerve-fibre density. These are early, small, exploratory trials rather than confirmatory phase-3 evidence, and ARA-290 has not gained regulatory approval.

Dosage & Safety

Studied doses come from clinical trials (e.g. 2 mg IV or 1–8 mg subcutaneous daily over ~4 weeks) and are not a personal recommendation. ARA-290 was reported as safe in the small trials to date 1Reference 1Heij L et al et al. · 2012RCTSafety and efficacy of ARA 290 in sarcoidosis patients with symptoms of small fiber neuropathy: a randomized, double-blind pilot study — randomised/RCTView study →, but its safety, interactions and long-term/pregnancy effects are not fully established. It is an investigational drug, not an approved dietary supplement, and any use outside a trial is informational-only.

References

  1. Heij L et al. (2012). Safety and efficacy of ARA 290 in sarcoidosis patients with symptoms of small fiber neuropathy: a randomized, double-blind pilot study — randomised/RCT. Mol Med. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23168581/