OKYO Pharma Limited announced that it filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the development of OK-101 to treat Neuropathic Corneal Pain (NCP). Study enrollment is planned to commence during First Quarter 2024 following IND allowance by the FDA. NCP remains a major unmet medical need for the ocular community, as there is no FDA-approved drug to treat NCP and this trial provides the opportunity to establish OK-101's potential to treat this condition.

The open-label trial will provide an opportunity to evaluate the safety and efficacy of OK-101 for NCP in a real-world clinical setting, fostering a better understanding of its potential benefits for patients. The NCP trial will be led by Pedram Hamrah, MD, Professor and Vice Chair of Research and Academic Programs, Co- Director of the Cornea Service and Director of the Center for Translational Ocular Immunology at Tufts Medical Center. An ophthalmologist and a clinician-scientist, Dr. Hamrah is a leading expert in NCP and co-inventor on the OK-101 patent.

He is a member of OKYO's Scientific Advisory Board and plans to serve as Principal Investigator of the study, which will be conducted at Tufts Medical Center.