Encinitas, California — January 27, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Kiora Pharmaceuticals has appointed Dr. Taiji Sakamoto, a retina specialist and expert in retinal disease treatment, to its Scientific Advisory Board.
Dr. Sakamoto, currently the Chair of Ophthalmology at Kagoshima University, will provide clinical and scientific insights to Kiora as the company develops new therapeutics for retinal diseases with high unmet needs.
Dr. Sakamoto said it is increasingly important to pursue therapeutic options that do not rely on chronic steroid use as understanding of inflammatory pathways in retinal disease deepens. He added that non-steroidal approaches such as KIO-104 represent an important direction for the field, aiming to manage inflammation while avoiding many of the limitations associated with steroids. Dr. Sakamoto said he looks forward to contributing to the advancement of these efforts as part of Kiora’s Scientific Advisory Board.
Dr. Sakamoto’s research and clinical interests include diabetic retinopathy, retinal surgery, and ocular angiogenesis. He developed triamcinolone-assisted vitrectomy and the Japan-Retinal Detachment Registry. As of June 2025, he had published more than 460 peer-reviewed papers with an h-index of 62. Additionally, he developed an AI-based OCT-algorithm, which is installed with several commercial machines. He is currently a Co-Editor-in-Chief of Graefe’s Archives of Ophthalmology and Editor-in-Chief of JRVS Times.
Eric Daniels, MD, MBA, Chief Development Officer of Kiora, said the company welcomes Dr. Sakamoto to Kiora’s Scientific Advisory Board, adding that Dr. Sakamoto’s extensive expertise in retinal disease and clinical research will provide valuable guidance as Kiora continues advancing its development programs. Daniels said that Kiora looks forward to Dr. Sakamoto’s contributions as it works to bring meaningful solutions to patients.
Dr. Sakamoto graduated from Kyushu University, Japan in 1985. He completed his residency and proceeded to attain fellowships in ophthalmology at Kyushu University, Japan. He then moved to the Doheny Eye Institute as a visiting faculty member at the University of Southern California between 1992 and 1995. He was the Vice President of Kagoshima University, Japan, and the President of the Japan Retina Vitreous Society (JRVS, 2020-2025). Internationally, he is a board member of ICO, (The International Council of Ophthalmology), a member of AOI (Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis) and the Club Jules Gonin, and a Fellow of ARVO. He has been the recipient of many scientific awards, including the Pfizer Ophthalmic Awards, ARVO Gold Fellow, and Kreissig Awardee from Euretina, among others.
Kiora Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing advanced therapies for retinal disease. The company targets critical pathways underlying retinal diseases using innovative small molecules to slow, stop, or restore vision loss. KIO-104 is being developed for the treatment of retinal inflammation and is a next-generation, non-steroidal, immuno-modulatory, and small-molecule inhibitor of dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH). KIO-301 is being developed for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa, choroideremia, and Stargardt disease. It is a molecular photoswitch that has the potential to restore vision in patients with inherited and/or age-related retinal degeneration.
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Source: Kiora Pharmaceuticals
