UniQuest established Spinifex in 2005 with a pre-seed investment from Uniseed. Spinifex aims to develop new drug candidates for the treatment and management of pain. Demand for pain drugs continues to increase, fuelling the growth of a market that was expected to be worth USⁱ$75 billion annually by end 2010.  With most types of pain still poorly treated, considerable investment is being made internationally in discovering novel approaches to treat pain, providing Spinifex with a wide choice of early-stage drugs from which to license products for development. Spinifex's principal technology relates to the discovery made by University of Queensland researchers led by Professor Maree Smith, of a novel pathway for the treatment of neuropathic and inflammatory pain.

Its lead candidate, EMA401, has completed Phasae 1 clinical trials under an Investigational New Drug application with the US Food and Drug Administration.  The initial indication for EMA401 is as a treatment for postherapic neuralgia, a significant neuropathic pain condition. EMA401 will also be developed for other key neuropathic pain indications including painful diabetic neropathy, neropathic pain associated with HIV infection and its treatment with antivirals as well as the neuropathic pain resulting from cancer chemotherapy.  Additional indications for EMA401 include various inflammatory pain conditions such as rheumatoid and osteoarthritis.

Spinifex Pharmaceuticals Pty Limited attracted $10.5M last year in an expanded “Tranche 2” Series B capital raising for developing its neuropathic pain therapies. UniQuest established Spinifex in 2005 with a pre-seed investment from Uniseed.

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