Naegis Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Naegis Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a retina-focused ophthalmology and life sciences company developing small-molecule therapies that act on the leukotriene inflammatory pathway to treat inflammatory and sight-threatening diseases of the eye. The company positions its compounds as oral and topical (eye drop) alternatives to the intra-ocular injections of growth factor inhibitors or steroids that are the current mainstay for retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, arguing that injections are costly to healthcare systems, uncomfortable for patients and associated with missed or delayed treatment.

Its lead compound is N0651, a patented molecule that blocks both branches of the leukotriene pathway — the cysteinyl-leukotriene (CysLT) branch and the leukotriene-B4 (LTB4) branch — which the company describes as a broad-spectrum approach across inflammatory eye diseases. N0651 has been evaluated in multiple pre-clinical studies of front- and back-of-the-eye inflammatory disease with both topical and oral administration, and financing closed in 2024 was directed at completing IND-enabling work toward a U.S. FDA Investigational New Drug application supporting a Phase 2 clinical trial. The company states it is the first to advance dual-leukotriene inhibitors into human studies for ocular disease.

Disease areas cited by the company include age-related macular degeneration (about 196 million people worldwide, projected to reach 288 million by 2040), diabetic retinopathy (more than 103 million people worldwide) and uveitis, which it says accounts for up to 20% of legal blindness globally.

Founding story

Naegis was founded by Dr. David Burgoyne, who holds a PhD in chemistry from the University of British Columbia and whose earlier research produced an anti-inflammatory compound that became the founding technology for Vancouver-based Inflazyme Pharmaceuticals, where he served as VP Research and VP Business Development. He founded Naegis to expand that research and identify novel molecules targeting inflammatory mechanisms, yielding first-in-class candidates for serious ophthalmic diseases.

Business model

Naegis is a pre-commercial drug discovery and development company. It discovers and patents small-molecule leukotriene synthesis inhibitors, advances them through pre-clinical and IND-enabling studies funded by equity financings, and works with external partners such as clinical research organisation ORA Inc. for clinical development.

No product revenue is described; the company is financed by equity investment while advancing pre-clinical assets toward clinical development, with patented compounds as the core asset base.

Traction

Naegis reported multiple pre-clinical studies of N0651 demonstrating activity against inflammatory disease at the front and back of the eye via topical and oral dosing. A U.S. patent for leukotriene synthesis inhibitors covering N0651 issued on May 7, 2024, following USPTO notice of allowance in November 2023, and a Japanese patent for leukotriene synthesis inhibitors issued on May 13, 2025. A financing closed in 2024 to fund IND-enabling studies, and a partnering deal with ORA Inc. was signed in October 2023.

Latest developments

On November 21, 2025, Naegis announced the appointment of Dr. Eduardo Navajas — Clinical Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Trials in the Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of British Columbia — as Chief Medical Officer and a member of its Scientific Advisory Board. Earlier milestones include the Japanese patent issued May 13, 2025 and the U.S. patent issued May 7, 2024 for leukotriene synthesis inhibitors.