SAN DIEGO, Nov. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardium Therapeutics Inc., a wholly
owned subsidiary of Aries Ventures Inc. (OTC: ARVT), today announced the
addition of several key positions to the Cardium management team. Dr.
Patricia L. Novak has joined the company as Vice President - Program
Development, Ted Williams as Vice President - Manufacturing and Technical
Operations, and Anthony Andrasfay as Vice President - Clinical Operations.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051018/CARDIUMLOGO )
Christopher J. Reinhard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cardium
Therapeutics stated, "We welcome Trish, Ted and Tony to our Cardium team.
They each played key roles in the advancement of Generx(TM) from pre-clinical
research to advanced late-stage development by Collateral Therapeutics, which
led to the acquisition of Collateral by Schering AG. We all worked together
for many years at Collateral and each brings to Cardium a wealth of experience
and product knowledge about the clinical development of cardiovascular
therapeutics and very specific hands-on experience with respect to the
commercial development of our lead product Generx, as well as discovery and
pre-clinical research related to our Corgentin product candidate."
Patricia L. Novak, Ph.D. joins the team as Vice President - Program
Development. Before joining Cardium Therapeutics, Dr. Novak served as
Executive Director, Program Management and R&D at Metabasis Therapeutics, a
publicly-traded biotechnology company. Prior to Metabasis she was Collateral
Therapeutics' Vice President of Program Management from 2000 to 2003 and
Senior Director of Program Management from 1997 to 2000 where she managed
development programs related to Generx and other cardiovascular product
candidates. From 1991 to 1997, Dr. Novak held various clinical research and
development positions at Gensia, Inc., the most recent of which was Director
of Research and Development Planning and Project Management. Prior to joining
Gensia, Dr. Novak was a Clinical Project Manager at Alpha Therapeutic
Corporation from 1987 to 1991. She also spent 12 years teaching and
conducting research at leading academic institutions such as the University of
Southern California School of Medicine. Dr. Novak received a Ph.D. in
biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine.
Ted Williams joins the company as Vice President - Manufacturing and
Technical Operations. Mr. Williams brings over 25 years of professional
experience in FDA-regulated environments of biopharmaceutical process
development, cGMP manufacturing, quality assurance and control, microbiology,
raw materials testing and analytical methods development. Prior to joining
Cardium Therapeutics, Mr. Williams was Senior Director of Quality Control at
Favrille, Inc., a publicly-traded biotechnology company. From 2001 to 2004,
he was Director of Research Operations, Process Technologies and Quality
Systems at Collateral Therapeutics where he was involved in research and
development efforts related to Generx and other product candidates. Mr.
Williams was Senior Manager of Quality Systems at Advanced Tissue Sciences
from 1998 to 2001, Manager of Quality Control at Chiron Technologies, Center
for Gene Therapy from 1995 to 1998, and Supervisor of Quality Control at
Viagene Inc. from 1992 to 1995. From 1978 to 1992, he was Chief
Microbiologist and Supervisor of the Clinical Microbiology Department at Yuma
Regional Medical Center. Mr. Williams earned his B.S. in microbiology from
Weber State University, Ogden, Utah.
Anthony Andrasfay joins the company as Vice President - Clinical
Operations. Before joining Cardium Therapeutics, Mr. Andrasfay served as
Associate Director of Clinical Research at Idun Pharmaceuticals. From 1999 to
2003, Mr. Andrasfay served as Clinical Research Manager for Collateral
Therapeutics where he was involved with the clinical development of the Generx
product candidate. He also served as Project Manager, Clinical Development
for Dura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from 1996 to 1999, and as Manager of Clinical
Research at Gensia, Inc. from 1992 to 1996. Mr. Andrasfay received his B.S.
in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine.
In addition, Bonnie Ortega has joined the company as Director of Investor
Relations/Public Relations. Ms. Ortega comes to Cardium after a successful
10-year career at CardioDynamics, a publicly-traded medical device company,
where she created and managed its investor relations program.
"I am also very pleased to welcome Bonnie to our team here at Cardium
Therapeutics. As we move forward in our commercial development of Generx and
seek new opportunities to enhance long-term value, Bonnie will be instrumental
in communicating the company's progress and milestones to our shareholders and
the media," added Reinhard.
About the Company
Cardium Therapeutics Inc. (the Company), headquartered in San Diego, is
primarily focused on interventional cardiology and the development and
commercialization of non-surgical cardiovascular gene therapeutics. The
Company's lead product candidate, Generx(TM), is a non-surgical angiogenic
therapy designed to be a one-time treatment for patients with recurrent angina
due to coronary artery disease. Generx and the related cardiovascular
technology platform were pioneered by Collateral Therapeutics, a San Diego-
based biotechnology company co-founded by the Company's CEO Christopher
Reinhard. In 1996, Schering AG Germany and Collateral Therapeutics entered
into a strategic partnership to develop angiogenic DNA-based therapeutics,
including Generx. Based on the advancing clinical progress of Generx,
Schering AG acquired Collateral Therapeutics in 2002. In October 2005, the
Company announced the acquisition of a portfolio of cardiovascular growth
factor therapeutics from Schering AG Germany, including the later-stage
product candidate, Generx, and simultaneously merged with a specially formed
subsidiary of Aries Ventures Inc. and completed a $30 million financing. For
more information about the Company and its product candidates, please visit
http://www.cardiumthx.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Except for statements of historical fact, the matters discussed in this
press release are forward looking and reflect numerous assumptions and involve
a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control and
may cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. For
example, there can be no assurance that critical personnel can be retained,
that our efforts to accelerate the commercial development of our lead product
will be successful, that required clinical trials will be successful, that
necessary regulatory approvals will be obtained, that the proposed treatments
will prove to be safe or effective, or that our efforts to grow the Company
will be successful. Actual results may also differ substantially from those
described in or contemplated by this press release due to risks and
uncertainties that exist in our operations and business environment,
including, without limitation, our limited experience in the development of
DNA-based cardiovascular therapeutics, our dependence upon proprietary
technology, our history of operating losses and accumulated deficits, our
reliance on collaborative relationships and critical personnel, and current
and future competition, as well as other risks described from time to time in
filings made by Aries Ventures Inc. with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. We undertake no obligation to release publicly the results of any
revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances arising after the date hereof.
Copyright 2005 Cardium Therapeutics, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use
Privacy Policy.
Cardium Therapeutics(TM) and Generx(TM) are trademarks of Cardium
Therapeutics, Inc.
SOURCE Cardium Therapeutics Inc.
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Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051018/CARDIUMLOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Related links:
http://www.cardiumthx.com
CONTACT:
Press / Investors, Bonnie Ortega, Director,
Investor Relations, Cardium Therapeutics Inc., +1-858-436-1018,
InvestorRelations@cardiumthx.com
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