OcuRegen™
Galvanis- Modality
- Topical small-molecule program
- Mechanistic focus
- Corneal wound current
- PCED status
- Preclinical
GΛLVΛNIS
Bioelectric control of corneal repair.
OcuRegen™ Preclinical ophthalmic program
Corneal wounds generate measurable current. OcuRegen™ is a preclinical topical small-molecule program designed to amplify that current and improve epithelial closure.1
Persistent corneal epithelial defects
Some corneal defects stop closing.
A persistent corneal epithelial defect remains open beyond the expected healing interval. Care can escalate from lubrication and bandage contact lenses to serum tears, amniotic membrane, tarsorrhaphy, grafting, or transplantation.
Published corneal wound-current research
Wound current is measurable. Pharmacology can raise it.
In postmortem human donor corneas, epithelial injury increased wound-edge current from 0.07 to 0.41 µA/cm². Published pharmacologic and ionic interventions increased the current more than twofold.R1 In rat cornea, interventions that raised or lowered wound current changed healing rate in the same direction in vivo.R2
Before injury
0.07 µA/cm²
After injury
0.41 µA/cm²
Therapeutic approach
OcuRegen is designed to amplify wound current.
Published work established that corneal wound current can be measured and pharmacologically increased.R1 OcuRegen translates that biology into a topical small-molecule program for persistent epithelial defects.
- 01Corneal injury generates wound currentEpithelial injury creates a measurable endogenous electrical signal.
- 02Wound current creates an electric field at the wound edgeThe field provides a directional cue for epithelial cell migration and repair.R2
- 03OcuRegen is designed to amplify wound currentA topical small-molecule program focused on pharmacologic amplification of corneal wound current.
- 04Improved epithelial closure is the objectiveThe target outcome is improved epithelial closure.
Why cornea
Current and closure can be measured together.
Viable ex vivo human donor corneas allow electrical measurement at the wound margin alongside serial observation of epithelial closure.
- Topical delivery
- The program is designed for direct administration to the ocular surface.
- Electrical measurement
- Wound current can be quantified at the injury.
- Closure measurement
- Epithelial repair can be tracked over time.
Selected public PCED programs
A different biological lever in PCED.
Selected PCED programs target neurotrophic signaling, connexin43, or secretome biology. OcuRegen is designed around corneal wound current.
| Program | Modality | Mechanistic focus | PCED status |
|---|---|---|---|
| OcuRegen™Galvanis | Topical small-molecule program | Corneal wound current | Preclinical |
| CenegerminOxervate® in neurotrophic keratitis | Recombinant human NGF | Neurotrophic signaling | FDA-approved for neurotrophic keratitis; Phase 3 PCED trial recruiting |
| NEXAGON®lufepirsen ophthalmic gel | Antisense oligonucleotide | Connexin43 | Phase 2 PCED trial listed as recruiting; record last updated July 2025 |
| KPI-012active development suspended | Human MSC secretome | Multifactor secretome biology | Phase 2b missed its primary and key secondary endpoints; KALA reports active development is suspended while it evaluates strategic options |
Cenegermin
Oxervate® in neurotrophic keratitis- Modality
- Recombinant human NGF
- Mechanistic focus
- Neurotrophic signaling
- PCED status
- FDA-approved for neurotrophic keratitis; Phase 3 PCED trial recruiting
NEXAGON®
lufepirsen ophthalmic gel- Modality
- Antisense oligonucleotide
- Mechanistic focus
- Connexin43
- PCED status
- Phase 2 PCED trial listed as recruiting; record last updated July 2025
KPI-012
active development suspended- Modality
- Human MSC secretome
- Mechanistic focus
- Multifactor secretome biology
- PCED status
- Phase 2b missed its primary and key secondary endpoints; KALA reports active development is suspended while it evaluates strategic options
Selected public programs reviewed July 29, 2026.4
Team
Built on decades of bioelectric wound research.
Founder and CEO Cody Rasmussen-Ivey leads OcuRegen. Scientific advisor Min Zhao and clinical advisor Mark Mannis co-authored the human donor cornea study cited here.R1 5
Founder and CEO
Cody Rasmussen-Ivey, PhD
Before founding Galvanis, Cody developed technology for a DARPA-funded bioelectric wound program and worked at Colossal Biosciences. His training is in molecular biology and bioinformatics.
Scientific Advisor, Bioelectric Wound Repair
Min Zhao, MD, PhD
Min Zhao is a professor of ophthalmology at UC Davis. His laboratory established methods to measure corneal wound current and showed that it can be pharmacologically increased. He advises Galvanis on electrophysiology and study design.
Clinical Advisor
Mark Mannis, MD, FACS
Mark Mannis is a cornea and ocular surface specialist and former chair of ophthalmology at UC Davis. His career spans corneal surgery, ocular surface disease, and clinical research.
Partnering
Request the OcuRegen overview.
Non-confidential materials are available for scientific, development, partnering, and investment discussions.
Contact GalvanisReferences
Selected publications.
01
Modulating endogenous electric currents in human corneal wounds: A novel approach of bioelectric stimulation without electrodesReid et al. · Cornea · 2011
02Wound healing in rat cornea: the role of electric currentsReid et al. · FASEB Journal · 2005
03Electrical signals control wound healing through phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase-γ and PTENZhao et al. · Nature · 2006
04Specific ion fluxes generate cornea wound electric currentsReid et al. · Communicative & Integrative Biology · 2011
05Bioelectric Signaling: Role of Bioelectricity in Directional Cell Migration in Wound HealingZhao et al. · Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology · 2022