The word “dry” is not one that tends to excite most readers. One of the rare exceptions to this rule is when it is combined with the word “eye,” and then it becomes a lot more interesting. Dry eye disease (DED) is one of the most common conditions ophthalmologists and optometrists will encounter on a daily basis, but this commonality does not detract from its interest as a subject.
The Ophthalmology Innovation Summit (OIS) is publishing more webinars than ever and on March 11 we got to watch the latest iteration: the Dry Eye Innovation Showcase. As usual, this webinar was split into two sections, with the first offering insight from a number of companies working in dry eye; the second part included clinical and industry perspectives.
The innovation showcase and company presentation section began with a talk from Associate Professor at the Kentucky College of Optometry, Dr. Paul Karpecki. He stated that in the United States, 42% of patients reported symptoms that would indicate DED, indicating that around 30-40 million Americans could have the condition. This is in contrast with the 17 million currently diagnosed with DED in the country.
Clearly there is a huge market for DED, a point emphasized by Donald Fishbein, president of Evolve Therapeutics LLC (New York, New York), and Arun Subramaniam, senior national accounts director of Symphony Health (Phoenix, Arizona). They jointly presented a report on DED market data based on Symphony Health’s research, which found that optometrists are now more likely to diagnose DED than ophthalmologists and that DED patients are concentrated in major metropolitan areas, like New York. The female-to-male prescription ratio was found to be 4:1, patients aged 51-plus accounted for 85% of patients, and lacrimal system disorders and keratitis represented the top diagnoses associated with prescription treatments for DED.
Super Schirmer’s Scale
The first company to present its product was Oyster Point Pharma (Princeton, New Jersey), a pharmaceutical company represented by its President and CEO Dr. Jeffrey Nau, PhD. The company offers a nasal spray for DED patients: OC-01 (varenicline), a 50ml preservative-free spray designed to trigger the parasympathetic system that controls tear film homeostasis. Dr. Nau reported that the main change from baseline in Schirmer’s Scale was 10.6 with 0.6mg/ml administration, and 11.0 with 1.2mg/ml, both after four weeks.
Up next was Aerie Pharmaceuticals (Durham, North Carolina), represented by the company’s Chief R&D Officer Dr. David Hollander. The company offers a new target for TRPM8, the cold sensitive thermoreceptors that are important to homeostasis. Dr. Hollander said his company is developing the AR-15512 selective TRPM8 agonist, which is designed to produce a cooling sensation to reduce ocular discomfort in DED patients.
Speaking next was Todd Brady,CEO of Aldeyra Therapeutics (Lexington, Massachusetts). His company is producing Reproxalap, a novel small molecule drug for DED which has shown strong results in cases involving “early onset and clinically relevant DED symptoms,” during a phase 2b trial. According to Brady, Reproxalap is effective after just one day of application in easing symptoms and improving the patient’s Schrimer’s score.
I’m Shipping Up to Boston
The State of Massachusetts was well represented during this seminar, with the next company, Allotex, from the state’s largest city, Boston. The company’s Co-Founder and President Michael Mrochen said his company focuses on allogenic products as the eye has a “special microenvironment which limits immune and inflammatory responses.” The company’s Allo Tears uses blood serum therapy to create eye drops via a proprietary process.
Courtney Smith was next, representing Hovione (Loures, Portugal), in her capacity as the company’s director of business development and licencing. The company’s new investigative drug Meizovo, a 0.3% minocycline microparticle suspension, is currently being assessed for safety in DED application. It is designed to treat inflammation, inflammatory cytokines and tear film instability caused by DED. It is also aimed at locking in moisture for improved comfort.
For the second European company of the webinar, we went to Natalia Perekhvatova, the CEO of Mitotech S.A. (Luxembourg, Luxembourg). The company is focusing on what Perekhvatova described as “the missing piece in ophthalmic therapies.” This is oxidative stress, which she said is a factor in DED and other eye pathologies. The company’s SkQ1 topical drop is designed to effectively counter mitochondrial oxidative stress, and is looking for around $60 million in funding to take the SkQ1 to the next stage of clinical development.
Tears and Film
The penultimate presentation was by the Chief Business Officer of AdOM (Lod, Israel) Stan Miele. The company produces the Tear Film Imager, which Miele described as the most advanced high resolution ophthalmic device designed to measure the tear film. It uses hyperspectral imaging and artificial intelligence, and includes parallel processing of a large field view spectrum, including 6mm diameter images and 600nm spectral width.
Finally we heard from Dr. Steve Ferguson from Olympic Ophthalmics (Issaquah, Washington). His company’s iTEAR 100 activates natural complete tear production and is applied in less than 30 seconds externally, along the side of the nose. According to the company’s six month (peer reviewed) feedback data, the iTEAR 100 offers immediate symptomatic relief, increased tear production and increased meibomian gland expression.
Editor’s Note: The Ophthalmology Innovation Summit Dry Eye Innovation Showcase webinar was held on March 11, 2021. Reporting for this story took place during the event.
