A total of 236 patients with moderate-to-severe DES will be randomized in the double-masked study to receive two oral doses of CF101 and a placebo for a 24-week period.
The company is conducting the study in the US, Europe and Israel and expects to release the results in the fourth quarter of 2013.
OphthaliX CEO Barak Singer said, "Receiving additional clinical data is an important step for OphthaliX as we further develop CF101."
CF101, a first in class, small molecule, orally bioavailable drug, demonstrated efficacy and an excellent safety profile in Phase II clinical studies.
It is currently developed for ophthalmic indications, including dry eye syndrome (Phase III), glaucoma (Phase II) and Uveitis.
CF101 is also developed for the treatment of autoimmune inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (Phase IIb) and psoriasis (Phase II/III).