RI 624

RI 624 works very differently from all currently approved drugs for the treatment of pain. Unlike the other pain relievers, RI 624 primarily works to inhibit the production of NGF, rather than COX-2 for instance. NGF is a member of a family of proteins known as neurotrophins that plays a role in the growth of certain sensory neurons, an activity that appears to end at birth or shortly afterward. Pain-causing injury or inflammation induces the synthesis and stimulates the release of NGF in later stages of life. Scientific observation has shown that the up-regulation of NGF is a common component of the inflammatory response that initiates and sustains the pain sensation. NGF therefore appears to have profound direct and indirect stimulatory effects on the primary sensory neurons that mediate pain. RI 624 essentially blocks NGF from binding to its target area and thus impedes an imflammatory response.