WCTF.org Transplant News

MARKHAM, ON, May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Cytochroma today announced that it has appointed R. Richard Wieland II as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Mr. Wieland, 63, brings to Cytochroma nearly 40 years of experience in finance and financial management, at both public and private companies, and will be based in Cytochroma's Illinois office.

"Rich has strong leadership skills, extensive experience managing finance departments and significant expertise in the capital markets," stated Charles W. Bishop, PhD, Cytochroma's President and CEO. "He joins Cytochroma at a critical inflection point in its growth. The Company now has multiple Vitamin D-based therapies in clinical development and it requires a seasoned CFO who can play a key role in expanding and evolving the corporate and financial infrastructure."

Previous to Cytochroma, Mr. Wieland was Executive Vice President & CFO of Advanced Life Sciences where he helped that company list on the NASDAQ stock market in 2005 and prepared it for Sarbanes-Oxley implementation. Mr. Wieland also led the successful initial public offering of MediChem Life Sciences, where he served as Executive Vice President & CFO. Earlier in his career, Mr. Wieland held senior level financial and management positions at BioGenex Laboratories, Cancer Treatment Centers, Fujisawa USA, LyphoMed and Procter & Gamble. He holds an MBA from Washington University and a Bachelor's degree in Accounting and Finance from Monmouth College.

"Cytochroma is at an exciting time in its development and has an outstanding management team in place," stated Mr. Wieland. "As CFO, I look forward to working with this team to build a strong and sustainable specialty pharmaceutical company."

Cytochroma has a diverse portfolio of Vitamin D-based therapeutics designed to treat disorders related to abnormal or insufficient Vitamin D metabolism in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. These new products will address target markets that are expected to grow significantly, reaching more than $1.2 billion annually by 2010 in North America alone. Cytochroma has three lead product candidates in development for CKD patients: CTA018 and CTAP201 are being developed for the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT), while CTAP101 is being developed for the treatment of Vitamin D insufficiency.

About Chronic Kidney Disease

According to the National Kidney Foundation (NKF), more than nine million North American patients suffer from moderate CKD (Stages 3 and 4) to severe CKD (Stage 5). Stages 3 and 4 are characterized by progressively decreasing kidney function as measured by glomerular filtration rate. In Stage 5, kidney function is altogether absent and patients require regular dialysis or kidney transplant for survival. An estimated 70-90% of CKD patients have Vitamin D insufficiency, which can lead to SHPT and resultant debilitating bone diseases. Mounting evidence continues to link Vitamin D insufficiency with CKD progression and increased morbidity and mortality in CKD patients. CKD is most frequently caused by diabetes or hypertension, both of which are consequences of a growing obesity epidemic in countries worldwide.

About Cytochroma

Cytochroma is a clinical stage specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing proprietary products to treat and prevent the clinical consequences of Vitamin D insufficiency and SHPT associated with CKD. The Company's Vitamin D-based therapeutics are designed to safely and effectively treat patients with Stage 3, 4 or 5 CKD. In addition, Cytochroma is developing novel therapies to treat hyperphosphatemia in these same patients. For more information, please visit www.cytochroma.com.

Source: Cytochroma Inc.

CONTACT: Eric J. Messner, Vice President, Commercial Operations, Tel:
(847) 236-7707 (Bannockburn, IL), Tel: (905) 479-5306 ext. 338 (Markham, ON),
eric.messner@cytochroma.com; Media Inquiries: Robert Stanislaro, FD, Tel:
(212) 850-5657, robert.stanislaro@fd.com

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Profile: Transplant News