Drug Database
ER

erythropoietin (Epocain / Epokine)

✓ Approved

HK inno.N · EPOR · Recombinant Proteins

What is erythropoietin?

erythropoietin is a recombinant proteins developed by HK inno.N. It is approved for therapeutic indications via injectable (others) or intravenous (iv) or subcutaneous injection.

Drug Profile

Brand NamesEpocain, Epokine
CompanyHK inno.N
Drug ClassRecombinant Proteins
Molecular TargetEPOR
RouteInjectable (Others), Intravenous (IV), Subcutaneous Injection
StatusApproved
Sources: ClinicalTrials.gov, HK inno.N

Mechanism of Action

Molecular Targets

erythropoietin acts on 1 molecular target:

EPORerythropoietin receptor (EPO-R)
Want deeper analysis?Noah AI can explain complex mechanisms and compare to similar drugs.

Therapeutic Indications

erythropoietin is developed for 1 unique indication across 1 therapeutic area.

Therapeutic AreaConditionPhase
Blood and lymphatic system disordersAnaemia✓ Approved

Related Research Articles

PubMedRenal failure2026-11-11

Longitudinal trajectory characteristics of the erythropoietin resistance index and their association with all-cause mortality in maintenance hemodialysis patients.

Yang Yun Y, He Wang W, Shi Junbo J, Wang Xiaoyun X et al.

Anemia is common in kidney failure, and most patients depend on erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs). We grouped maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients by how their erythropoietin resistance index (ERI) changed over time, and asked whether these patterns predicted death. We reviewed records of MHD patients treated at our center between 2021 and 2025. K-means clustering was applied to repeated ERI measurements to define trajectories. Logistic regression tested whether trajectory group, continuous ERI, and ERI quartile were related to all-cause mortality, the primary outcome. We also used spline models, subgroup and sensitivity analyses, and examined whether ERI improved prediction. A total of 150 patients were included, and 110 had enough repeated ERI data for trajectory analysis; 26 of them died (23.6%). Baseline ERI quartiles differed in dialysis vintage, dry weight, hemoglobin, and sex. In adjusted models, none of the ERI measures-continuous, quartile, or trajectory-predicted mortality. Dialysis vintage, sex, and hemoglobin were stronger predictors, and adding ERI barely changed discrimination. ERI varied widely between patients and tracked the severity of anemia and overall clinical state. It did not, however, show an independent association with death that we could detect. With a retrospective design and limited precision, our results are inconclusive about prognostic value rather than evidence that none exists.

PMID 43009750
Read full article →
PubMedHealth SA = SA Gesondheid2026-11-11

Oral health knowledge, attitude and practices among student nurses at a university in South Africa.

Khonco Pelisa P, Musafiri John J JJ, Chipps Jennifer-Anne JA

Poor oral health resulting from poor knowledge, negative attitudes and poor practices contributes to oral diseases. Oral diseases remain a public health concern and negatively affect student nurses' academic performance. These students should serve as role models in promoting oral health among communities. A lack of oral self-care among student nurses may raise a health concern. To assess student nurses' knowledge, determine their attitude and practices regarding oral health at a Western Cape university. This study was conducted at a Western Cape university, South Africa, which offers undergraduate nursing programmes. A quantitative approach with a descriptive design was conducted, and data were collected from a quota sample of 287 student nurses using a self-administered questionnaire. Data captured into IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences computer program IBM SPSS Statistics version 28.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, United States), were analysed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests to test associations. The response rate was 97.9% (281/287). Most of the respondents did not recognise the importance of brushing twice daily and flossing once, and only 98 (34.9%) were knowledgeable. A positive attitude was noted among the majority of the respondents (261, 92.9%) who agreed that oral health knowledge can contribute to the prevention of tooth loss. Good practices were noted among most of the respondents (277, 98.6%) who cleaned their teeth daily with a toothbrush. Student nurses had poor oral health knowledge, mixed attitudes and fair oral health practices. This study highlights the need for the formal integration of oral health into the nursing curriculum. This study contributed to the body of knowledge in nursing research and education.

PMID 43011062
Read full article →
PubMedBMC public health2026-11-11

Geographical disparities and temporal trends of end stage kidney disease incidence: a systematic review.

Tesfaw Lijalem M LM, Dalugoda Yohani Y, Tiong Mark K MK, Osborne Nicholas J NJ et al.

While individual studies address the geographical and temporal variations contributing to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) incidence, there is a notable lack of comprehensive research consolidating these findings. This study systematically reviewed and analyzed original articles reporting the incidence of ESKD across different geographical locations and time over two decades worldwide. The study focused on individuals with ESKD, aged 18 and older, regardless of whether they received kidney replacement therapy. Original studies published between 01 Jan 2003 and 23 March 2026 focusing on ESKD incidence and reporting geographical variations and/or temporal trends were included. Literature screening and data extraction were performed using Covidence. Geographical variations in ESKD incidence were assessed across countries, major sub-divisions, and small areas, while temporal trends were evaluated both annually and seasonally. Among forty-one papers reviewed, 18 (43.9%) reported geographical variation, 17 (41.5%) reported temporal trends, and 6(14.6%) reported both. Of those examining geographical variations, 16.7% assessed ESKD incidence across countries, 33.3% across major sub-divisions, and 50.0% across small areas. ESKD incidence varies widely across regions, ranging from 100 per million population in Nepal to over 450 in Taiwan, with higher rates in high-income settings and notable within-country disparities in areas such as the southern United States, southern Taiwan, and parts of Japan. Incidence has increased over time, though some regions remain stable, with higher rates observed in winter than summer. Geographical variation in ESKD incidence was observed across countries, regions, and small areas, with notable increases over time. Factors impacting geographical variations include angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor use, income, erythropoietin use, obesity, and paraquat exposure, while race, country of residence, diabetes type, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and calendar year affect temporal variations. Both age and gender contribute to geographical and temporal variations.

PMID 43009887
Read full article →
PubMedCureus2026-11-11

Physician and the Machine: An Analysis of the Ethical Educational Use of Artificial Intelligence by Medical Students.

de Jesus Victor Hugo Policena VHP, da Silveira Guilherme Cruvinel Jordão GCJ, Luz Pedro Enzo Camargo PEC, Ferronatto Luiza Letti LL et al.

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) has been increasingly integrated into medical education, particularly through tools such as ChatGPT (OpenAI, California, US), Gemini (Google DeepMind, California, US), DeepSeek (Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence Basic Technology Research Co., Ltd., Hangzhou, China), and Microsoft Copilot (Microsoft Corp., Redmond, WA, US). Although these resources present the potential to expand access to information and assist in academic development, their use also raises ethical concerns related to the reliability of information, technological dependence, plagiarism, superficial learning, and potential impairment of clinical reasoning. This study aimed to investigate the perception of medical students regarding the use of AI in their academic training, emphasizing perceived ethical limits and practices considered ideal for its utilization. Methods This was a quantitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional study conducted with medical students using a structured questionnaire administered via a digital form. Results The sample consisted of 120 participants, of whom 99.2% (n=119) reported having previously used AI tools for academic purposes. It was observed that 73.3% (n=88) of the students use AI recurrently, primarily for summarizing content, researching medical information, simulating clinical cases, resolving questions, drafting academic texts, and planning studies. Most participants acknowledged the positive contribution of AI to learning, with 60.0% (n=72) stating that these tools contribute significantly and 36.7% (n=44) stating they contribute to a limited extent. However, students also identified relevant risks, especially the reduction of their own clinical reasoning, technological dependence, lack of information reliability, superficial learning, and academic plagiarism. Furthermore, 83.3% (n=100) stated that they did not receive adequate institutional guidance on the use of these tools, and 67.5% (n=81) demonstrated an interest in receiving further training on the ethical and pedagogical use of AI. No participant (0.0%, n=0) advocated for the prohibition of AI in academic contexts, while 67.5% (n=81) considered that its use should be regulated with ethical and pedagogical criteria. Conclusions AI already significantly integrates the academic routine of medical students and is perceived as a useful resource for learning, but it is still used in a scenario of insufficient institutional guidance. The findings reinforce the need for curricular guidelines, faculty training, and specific ethical education to promote the critical, responsible, and pedagogically appropriate use of AI in medical training.

PMID 43011953
Read full article →
PubMedDrug testing and analysis2026-11-10

Mutant Human Erythropoietin from Insect Cells as Novel Low Molecular-Weight Internal Standards for ERAs Analysis.

Niu Chengshuai C, Mao Junhan J, He Sen S, Liu Xinchao X et al.

Doping analysis of erythropoietin receptor agonists (ERAs) is frequently hindered by the "no band" phenomenon, in which endogenous erythropoietin (EPO) becomes undetectable owing to a variety of pre-analytical factors. The absence of an internal standard (ISTD) poses the risk of an undetected sample preparation failure. Furthermore, the EPO gene variant c.577del presents a substantial analytical challenge. Specifically, the failure to identify variant-encoded EPO (VAR-EPO) during reverse immunopurification (RI) may cause false-positive results for recombinant EPO (rEPO), highlighting the necessity of an ISTD for RI process monitoring. Nevertheless, the degradation of high molecular weight PEG-modified ISTDs could interfere with ERAs detection. To address these technical limitations, low molecular weight ISTDs represent a superior alternative for methodological development. This study reports the strategic development of two novel low molecular weight ISTDs: a wild-type EPO-based designed mutant (INS1) and a mutant EPO encoded by the c.557del variant (INS2). Both mutant proteins were expressed in the H5 insect cell line via the baculovirus expression vector system. The two engineered EPO mutants possess simplified paucimannose-type N-glycans, conferring a distinctly lower molecular weight profile than endogenous EPO and mammalian cell-expressed rEPO. Functionally, INS1 is designed to monitor the integrity of the initial testing procedure (ITP), whereas INS2 is engineered for process monitoring of RI to enable accurate rEPO confirmation. The results demonstrate that the developed low molecular weight ISTDs can effectively monitor procedural integrity and improve the detection performance of ERAs analytical assays.

PMID 43004537
Read full article →
PubMedAdvanced pharmaceutical bulletin2026-11-10

Comparative Analysis of MAR and Terminator Elements in Controlling Stable EPO Expression in CHO-K1 Cells.

Jalali Fatemeh F, Abdoli Shahriyar S, Shamsabadi Fatemeh F, Yamchi Ahad A et al.

Chromosome remodeling, mRNA 3' end extension diversity, mRNA maturation, and the utilization of upstream and downstream DNA elements have been shown to significantly impact the production of recombinant proteins. In this study, we employed the human beta-globin Matrix Attachment Region (β-MAR) as an upstream element and the human beta-globin terminator (β-TERM) as a downstream section to augment erythropoietin (EPO) production. Four plasmids expressing the EPO transgene, after optimization for codon bias and secondary structure of the EPO mRNA, were transfected into CHO-K1 cells. Two weeks after antibiotic selection, pooled stable clones were evaluated for gene copy number (GCN), mRNA quantification, and EPO expression level. Our results revealed a significant increase in the amount of EPO secreted by stable CHO cells in the presence of β-MAR. At the same time, β-TERM had no noticeable impact on EPO production. As expected, the presence of the β-MAR sequence resulted in a higher gene copy number with 15 gene copy per cell (GCN/cell) and mRNA quantity with 5.3 fold change, leading to a much greater secretion of EPO with 28.3 mIU/ml compared to the β-TERM sequence with 3 GCN/cell, 2.8 mRNA fold change and 8.2 mIU/ml of EPO quantity. In the other construct incorporating both β-MAR and β-TERM elements, a gene copy number (GCN) of 7.0 per cell was detected, accompanied by a 4.58-fold elevation in mRNA expression and a secreted erythropoietin (EPO) concentration of 22.45 mIU/ml. In contrast, the construct devoid of both β-MAR and β-TERM (used as the calibrator) elements demonstrated a GCN of 1.0 per cell, an mRNA expression fold change of 1.0, and an EPO concentration of 8.35 mIU/ml. This experiment further supports previous studies, demonstrating the significant impact of the β-MAR element on recombinant protein production in stable CHO-K1 cells.

PMID 43005228
Read full article →

+9996 more articles available with a free account

Sign up free to view all articles →

Ask about erythropoietin