Full Press Release Details
Announces Appointment of Max Lyon as Chief Executive Officer and
Arbor, Michigan, June 29, 2009 -- Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AMEX: AEN), a
specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to the awareness, prevention and
treatment of subclinical zinc deficiency and chronic copper toxicity in the
mature adult population, today announced that it has appointed Max Lyon as Chief
Executive Officer and President of Adeona.
has been CEO/President of six successful medical diagnostic and therapeutic
companies, five of which he co-founded, including BioControl Systems, Bainbridge
Sciences (Bard Diagnostics), MediQuest Therapeutics, NexCura, Confirma and CG
Therapeutics. He co-founded and led the acquisition of Bainbridge Sciences by
C.R. Bard (NYSE:BCR) and continued as the President of Bard Diagnostics, and a
senior executive team member of C.R. Bard, for four years. He also served as
Senior Vice President of Administration at Genetic Systems (NASDQ: GENS) and was
a co-founder and Director of Oncogen, a joint venture of Syntex Corporation and
Genetic Systems. Genetic Systems and Oncogen were acquired by Bristol Myers for
$300 million. He has broad experience in marketing, sales, business development,
regulatory affairs, manufacturing and other key operational areas.
has had a successful 25 year career in the medical diagnostic and biotechnology
fields with extensive CEO-level experience in the commercial launch and revenue
growth of exciting new medical products. He has built direct sales and marketing
organizations, completed pioneering market development efforts and created
partnerships with major corporations, including GE Healthcare, Abbott Labs and
Smith Kline, for the U.S. and international marketing, sales, development and
distribution of the products his companies have created.
was a founder and CEO of Bainbridge Sciences, subsequently acquired by C.R.Bard
(NYSE: BCR). At Bainbridge and Bard Diagnostics he managed the development, FDA
PMA clearance and international launch of the BTA test, the first bladder cancer
test, and the first rapid cancer test of any kind, cleared for marketing by the
FDA. The BTA test became, and remains, the international market leading
immunoassay for bladder cancer detection.
of Confirma, Mr. Lyon was responsible for the final development, FDA clearance
and international launch of CADstream, the first MRI-based diagnostic system for
breast cancer. CADstream is the U.S. and international market leader in the MRI
CAD field for disease detection with new applications coming online for prostate
and liver cancer. Mr. Lyon was also the senior business executive responsible
for Genetic Systems' role in the joint commercial development and international
launch, with Syva Diagnostics, of the MicroTrak Chlamydia diagnostic test. This
product has become the diagnostic standard for Chlamydia testing.
new capacity as CEO, Mr. Lyon will oversee the commercial launch of Adeona's
product suite to help patients and physicians diagnose and treat diseases of
chronic copper toxicity and subclinical zinc deficiency in the mature adult
population, including, Alzheimer's disease (AD), mild cognitive impairment
(MCI), Parkinson's disease (PD) and age-related macular
(AMD). Through Adeona's pending Hartlabs acquisition, a CLIA-certified clinical
reference lab, Adeona plans to offer to physicians a panel of serum-based
diagnostic tests capable of quantifying levels of potential chronic toxic copper
exposure and zinc deficiency in patients with confirmed or suspected AD, MCI, PD
Board of Directors is very pleased to have Max Lyon join Adeona team as CEO and
President." stated Steve H. Kanzer, Adeona's Chairman. "After having had the
last month to work with Max, I am confident that Max's wealth of experience and
success in multiple diagnostic product launches, including initial market
development and sales, will be invaluable as Adeona prepares for its initial
product launch and future revenue growth."
extremely excited about the opportunity to lead Adeona in introducing new
products to help adults at risk for, or diagnosed with, cognitive impairment and
Alzheimer's disease to deal with these debilitating conditions." stated Max
Lyon. "This is a cruel and growing epidemic in the U.S. and one with very few
options. Adeona can play a leading role in meeting this challenge with a new
diagnostic and treatment paradigm and I plan to put all of my skills and energy
to work to make this happen."
2007 and 2008, Adeona sponsored and conducted an IRB-approved, prospective,
observational, blinded clinical trial enrolling 90 subjects, 30 with Alzheimer's
disease (AD), 30 with Parkinson's disease (PD) and 30 age-matched normal
subjects (Normals). The purpose of the study was to evaluate serum markers of
copper status and compare these results across the three groups of patients. The
results of our study indicate highly statistically significant differences in
serum markers of copper status between AD and normal subjects. We believe that
the differences observed suggest that Alzheimer's patients have impaired
protection from chronic copper toxicity, which may contribute to the progression
of their disease. The results from this study also appear to indicate a
subclinical zinc deficiency in AD subjects.
Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AMEX: AEN) is a company dedicated to the awareness,
diagnosis, prevention and treatment of subclinical zinc deficiency and chronic
copper toxicity in the mature population. Adeona believes that such conditions
may contribute to the progression of debilitating degenerative diseases,
including, Dry Age-Related Macular Degeneration (Dry AMD), Alzheimer's disease
(AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in susceptible persons. Adeona is also
developing a number of late-stage clinical drug candidates for the treatment of
rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. For further information, please
visit www.adeonapharma.com
release includes forward-looking statements on Adeona's current expectations and
projections about future events. In some cases forward-looking statements can be
identified by terminology such as "may," "should," "potential," "continue,"
"expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," and
similar expressions. These statements are based upon current beliefs,
expectations and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and include statements
clinical trials for oral dnaJP1, Zinthionein, flupirtine, or Trimesta. Adeona is
at an early stage of development and may not ever have any products that
generate significant revenue. Important factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those reflected in Adeona's forward-looking statements
include, among others, a failure of Adeona's product candidates to be
demonstrably safe and effective, a failure to obtain regulatory approval for the
company's products or to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements, regulatory
limitations relating to the company's ability to promote or commercialize its
products for awareness, prevention, diagnosis or treatment of subclinical zinc
deficiency and chronic copper toxicity, a lack of acceptance of Adeona's product
candidates in the marketplace, a failure of the company to become or remain
profitable, that we will continue to meet the continued listing requirements of