DeCure's autonomous Rare AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for glossopharyngeal nerve disorder — screening already-approved drugs against its 10-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleGlossopharyngeal nerve disorder maps to a 10-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for glossopharyngeal nerve disorder is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
sodium voltage-gated channel alpha subunit 9 (SCN9A) — SCN9A is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
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RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 7W9K · 2.2 Å · ligand O-[(R)-{[(2R)-2,3-bis(octadecanoyloxy)propyl]oxy}(hydroxy)phosphoryl]-L-serine (P5S). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 1948 paper describes a technique for glossopharyngeal nerve block, used to anaesthetise the base of the tongue for surgery and as a diagnostic test to select patients for surgical section of the ninth cranial nerve. No patient numbers or outcome measures are given.
A 2022 case report describes a 51-year-old man with idiopathic glossopharyngeal neuralgia who received inpatient (10 days) and outpatient (35 sessions) Korean medicine treatment including acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, and herbal medicine. Pain reduced after 4 days and was completely resolved within 4 months. Numerical Rating Scale score fell from 4 to 0, Neuropathic Pain Scale score from 49 to 8, and Self-report Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptoms and Signs score from 18 to 0. This is a single case, uncontrolled.
A 2019 study treated 21 patients (6 male, 15 female, aged 47–78) with glossopharyngeal neuralgia using a nerve stimulator-guided injection of 0.3 ml of 1% adriamycin (doxorubicin) plus 0.5 ml compound betamethasone. Visual analogue scale (VAS) scores were 7.87 before treatment, then 3.76 at 1 week, 3.12 at 1 month, 2.98 at 3 months, 2.57 at 6 months, and 1.65 at 1 year. The total effective rate was 90.5% (20/21 cases). No complications were reported. The therapeutic effect stabilised at one month. The authors conclude the method is safe and effective, but the study lacks a control group and randomisation.
A 2014 case report describes a 22-year-old woman with bilateral glossopharyngeal neuralgia for 14 years who had previously undergone staged bilateral microvascular decompression and a left-sided reoperation, with persistent right-sided symptoms managed by maximal narcotics. Right-sided re-exploration with glossopharyngeal rhizotomy and section of the upper rootlet of the vagal nerve resolved the pain. The authors recommend microvascular decompression or rhizotomy as first-line surgery, and note that re-exploration should include rhizotomy to reduce recurrence risk. This is a single case.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
European Journal of Pain · 2002 · 37 citations
Gabapentin treatment of glossopharyngeal neuralgia: a follow‐up of four years of a single case
AbstractGlossopharyngeal neuralgia causes intermittent, lancinanting pain, involving the posterior tongue and pharynx, with radiation to deep ear structures. There are different pharmacological therapies which are tried to treat the neuralgia: carbamazepin, phenytoin, diazepam, amytriptyline, phenobarbital, ketamine, and baclofen; there are also surgical treatment proposed in order to cure the neuralgia such as vascular decompression or electrical stimulation of the motor cortex controlateral to the pain area. We report a single case of a patient with glossopharyngeal neuralgia treated with Gabapentin, the first described, who was followed up for four years, who respond completely to the therapy and did not complain from side effects, reducing even the reminiscence of pain during the second cluster of crisis.
AbstractAbstract 1. 1. A new technic for the completion of glossopharyngeal nerve block is described. 2. 2. Case reports are presented which illustrate the use of glossopharyngeal block in anesthetizing the base of the tongue for operative intervention and in providing an accurate diagnostic measure in the selection of patients for surgical section of the ninth cranial nerve.
Journal of Acupuncture Research · 2022 · 1 citations · open access
Integrative Korean Medicine Treatment for Idiopathic Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia: A Case Report
AbstractGlossopharyngeal neuralgia is a skin-sensitive condition/disease that causes severe pain in the facial area predominantly innervated by the glossopharyngeal nerve. A 51-year-old man diagnosed with glossopharyngeal neuralgia who was hospitalized with severe pain that limited his daily life activities. From November 18, 2021, to March 4, 2022, he received inpatient (10 days) and outpatient treatment (35 times) using acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, and herbal medicine. His symptoms were assessed using the Numerical Rating Scale, Neuropathic Pain Scale, and the Self-report Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptom and Signs. The pain reduced after 4 days of initiating Korean medicine treatment and was completely resolved within 4 months of treatment (Numerical Rating Scale score 4 to 0; Neuropathic Pain Scale score 49 to 8; Self-report Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptoms and Signs score 18 to 0). Korean medicine treatment could be an option for treating patients with neuropathy who rely on analgesics.
Effects of glossopharyngeal nerve injection with adriamycin guided by nerve stimulator in the treatment of patients with glossopharyngeal neuralgia
AbstractObjective
To explore the safety and effects of adriamycin injection in glossopharyngeal nerve guided by nerve stimulator in the treatment of patients with glossopharyngeal neuralgia.
Methods
Twenty-one patients with glossopharyngeal neuralgia, 6 males and 15 females, aged 47-78 years old, from January 2012 to March 2018 in the department of Pain Medicine of Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital, were treated by nerve block with adriamycin in glossopharyngeal nerve guided by nerve stimulator. The injected drugs included 1% adriamycin 0.3 ml and compound betamethasone 0.5 ml (containing betamethasone dipropionate 2.5 mg and betamethasone sodium phosphate 1 mg). Visual analogue scale (VAS) was recorded before the treatment and 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after the treatment. The effects and the complications were observed after the treatment.
Results
VAS was (7.87±0.60), (3.76±0.42), (3.12±0.28), (2.98±0.33), (2.57±0.50) and (1.65±0.36) respectively before the treatment, and 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year after the treatment in the 21 patients. The difference was statistically significant (F=102.45, P<0.05). The therapeutic effect tended to stabilize at one month after the treatment. The total effective rate was 90.5% (20/21 cases) . No complications were observed in all patients.
Conclusion
Adriamycin injection in glossopharyngeal nerve guided by nerve stimulator is a safe and effective method for the treatment of patients with glossopharyngeal neuralgia.
Key words:
Doxorubicin; Glossopharyngeal nerve diseases; Physical stimulation
Journal of Neurological Surgery Part B Skull Base · 2014 · 0 citations
Reoperation for Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia
AbstractObjective: To discuss reexploration for recurrent glossopharyngeal neuralgia, whose current role is not well defined. Study Design: Case presentation. Material and Methods: A 22-year-old female with bilateral sharp pain located in retroauricular, retromandibular, and deep pharyngeal areas since 14 years. She had pain episodes almost daily requiring frequent emergency department admissions. She had previous multiple evaluations in other institutions throughout United States with neurologists, pain clinics, and neurosurgeons, had upper cervical spinal cord stimulator trials, and later underwent to staged bilateral microvascular decompression for glossopharyngeal neuralgia in one institution in 2010, and later left-sided reoperation in another institution in March, 2013. Persisted with right-sided symptoms, and managed with maximal doses of narcotics. Results: Performed right-sided reexploration with glossopharyngeal rhizotomy, as well as section of upper rootlet of vagal nerve under electrophysiology monitoring including facial nerve, auditory evoked responses, and vagal nerve monitoring (video available). Pain resolved after surgery. Conclusions: Glossopharyngeal neuralgia is a rare condition, and after adequate diagnosis the first recommendation is microvascular decompression or possible rhizotomy, if the trajectory of glossopharyngeal nerve or upper rootlets of vagal nerve are altered with Teflon pledges. A reexploration will recommend rhizotomy to decrease chance of recurrence, and in either initial operation, or reexploration, electrophysiology monitoring is recommended.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
