Brian Strem, CEO and Director of Kiora Pharmaceuticals, didn’t plan to become an executive, or even an entrepreneur, when he started doing translational research for publicly traded biotech company Cytori Therapeutics. But as his career progressed from the bench to business development to leading Bayon Therapeutics (acquired by EyeGate) and Okogen, he found himself following in his father’s footsteps: during his childhood, Strem watched his first mentor grow a textile business from the family garage to an industry leading company.

Inspired by Dad’s passionate pursuit, Strem has overseen the development of Kiora’s three-product pipeline. Kiora recently shared topline results on KIO-101, a small molecule dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) inhibitor, demonstrating early stage, promising clinical data in reducing ocular surface inflammation in patients with conjunctival hyperemia. The results give Kiora the data needed to move into Phase II studies.

KIO-201, the company’s legacy product, is a chemically modified form of hyaluronic acid that’s moved through later-stage trials. Strem says the drop significantly accelerates the rate of wound healing compared to today’s standard of care.

Listen to the podcast, hosted by Paul Karpecki, OD, FAAO, for the full story. You’ll hear: