28th Aug 2019 14:39
(Alliance News) - OKYO Pharma Ltd on Wednesday said its OK-113 drug had "potent anti-inflammatory effects" in a model of dry eye disease in mice.
Administering topical treatment of OK-113-containing eye drops to mice with an experimental model of dry eye disease "showed potent anti-inflammatory effects to reduce corneal permeability and other symptoms of dry eye" and has the same potency as cyclosporine, an immunosuppressant and the active ingredient in Allergan.
Dry eye disease is caused by a lack of lubrication and moisture on the surface of the eyes. Symptoms include irritation and discomfort, inflammation, and visual impairment.
OKYO is focused on developing G-protein coupled receptor-targeted drugs to treat dry eye disease. G-protein coupled receptor is a large family of proteins and drugs targeting these proteins have indications such as inflammation, oncology, and cardiovascular diseases.
Executive Chair Willy Simon said: "We are excited with these 'proof-of-concept' studies demonstrating potential of our core GPCR-based technology for treatment of inflammatory diseases and non-opioid analgesics for management of chronic pain."
Raj Patil, senior director of Research & Development at OKYO, said: "Dry eye is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects millions of people globally and currently it has limited treatment options. We are pleased with these positive results identifying our in-house discovered lead drug candidate for DED treatment."
Shares in OKYO were up 0.9% at 5.80 pence in London on Wednesday afternoon.
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