# Reversal of preexisting neuropathic pain by spinal delivery of AIBP

> **NIH NIH R33** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2020 · $376,652

## Abstract

Project Summary
Peripheral nerve injury can lead to anomalous sensations referred to as neuropathic pain. Nerve injury may
result from a variety of insults ranging from frank injury to the nerve though sectioning or compression, and is
particularly prevalent following chemotherapies used in oncology. Symptoms often include continuous burning
pain and abnormal sensory sensations such as allodynia (pain as a result of non-noxious stimuli) and
hyperalgesia (an increased response to a normally painful stimulus) Persistent pain after resolution of clinically
appreciable signs of injury poses a therapeutic challenge and current therapies do not meet this medical need.
Accordingly, novel treatment options that afford additional benefit in prevention or relief of pain are needed. In
this proposal, a collaboration initiated between the University of California San Diego (UCSD) and Epigen
Biosciences Inc. seeks to fully evaluate the apoA-I binding protein (AIBP), an agent that interferes with inflamed
lipid rafts in spinal glia and has been found to reverse facilitated pain states in several mouse models. The goals
of this proposal during the R21 phase include the AIBP protein manufacture and characterization,
pharmacokinetics studies, design and refinement of experimental animal protocols to assess efficacy and
pharmacodynamics of AIBP in mouse models of polyneuropathy (induced by chemotherapeutic agents) and
mononeuropathy (L5 nerve ligation), and optimization of pharmacodynamics assays to evaluate AIBP
engagement of spinal glia and its anti-inflammatory effects. Contingent upon the successful completion of a set
of proposed milestones, the R33 phase will commence to establish dose-dependent efficacy profile for AIBP
treatment of neuropathic pain and to correlate it with AIBP pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. The
proposal is designed to advance the AIBP project to the point where it can meet the entry criteria for NINDS
Cooperative Research to Enable and Advance Translational Enterprises (CREATE) program, with the ultimate
goal to develop a novel biologic therapeutics for management of persistent pain states.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10197482
- **Project number:** 4R33NS104769-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Yury Miller
- **Activity code:** R33 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $376,652
- **Award type:** 4N
- **Project period:** 2018-08-01 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10197482

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10197482, Reversal of preexisting neuropathic pain by spinal delivery of AIBP (4R33NS104769-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10197482. Licensed CC0.

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