Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - December 11, 2019) - iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSXV: ICO) (OTCQB: ICOTF) ("iCo" or "the Company") today announced it has engaged Ora, Inc., the world's leading full-service ophthalmic CRO and product development firm, to assist the Company with its ophthalmic regulatory and development strategy for iCo-008. It is expected that this work will ultimately result in a meeting with the FDA prior to initiation of a Phase 2 trial. Ora has vast expertise in ocular allergy and immunology, both pre-clinical and clinical, and has been involved in multiple drug approvals in this area. Paul Gomes, Vice President of Allergy and Blepharitis at Ora, commented, "We are very excited to collaborate with iCo in engaging with the FDA to establish a development pathway for iCo-008 for severe ocular allergic diseases. In the US, there have been no new therapies approved for these orphan diseases within the last 25 years. Innovation is necessary to increase the available treatment options and to reduce or eliminate the need for chronic steroid usage. "
Previously iCo announced the conclusion of court proceedings in the US and Israel, resulting in approval of Alexion's asset purchase agreement related to iCo-008, an anti-eotaxin-1 antibody. iCo retains worldwide ophthalmic use indications, including Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) and Atopic Keratoconjunctivitis (AKC).
