28 Oct 2008 07:00
Amphion Partner Company, Myconostica, Appoints Experienced
Diagnostics Executive John Garland as CEO
London and New York, 28 October 2008 - Amphion Innovations plc (LSE: AMP) today announces that its Partner Company, Myconostica Ltd, a UK Manchester-based medical diagnostic company which specialises in rapid and highly specific tests for life-threatening fungal infections, has appointed John Garland as Chief Executive Officer commencing November 10th 2008.
John has over 20 years of international experience in the diagnostics field including both infectious disease diagnostics and molecular diagnostic products. Most recently he was with Abbott Diagnostics, based in Germany, as Director of Area Marketing covering Europe, Middle East, Africa and India where he led the Immunoassay and Clinical Chemistry Marketing Team with responsibility for driving their country-specific strategy and tactical plans. Prior to that, John was Abbott Diagnostics' General Manager in Switzerland. A graduate of the Dublin Institute of Technology, John spent the early part of his career in the clinical laboratory services sector. John will take over from current interim CEO Jerel Whittingham, who will remain on the Board whilst returning full time to his concurrent role as UK Managing Director with Amphion.
John Garland commented: "I am delighted to be joining Myconostica at this exciting time. I welcome the opportunity to work with a highly experienced team to deliver the full value of Myconostica's product line on a global scale, as well as establishing the company's presence in the clinical diagnostics area. The company closed an over-subscribed funding round earlier in the year and has recently launched the first in an impressive pipeline of products to diagnose serious fungal diseases. I look forward to leading the company and further developing a valuable business which is making a significant impact in this area of considerable unmet clinical need."
Dr. David Holbrook, Board Director and Life Sciences Partner at MTI, who manage the UMIP Premier Fund's investment, said: "Myconostica's Board welcomes John as CEO and believes he is the right individual to take the company into its next stage of growth. We are very pleased to have succeeded in attracting such a high-calibre executive, with extensive international sales and marketing experience in diagnostics, a significant mark of the tremendous contribution Jerel Whittingham has made as interim CEO. With a number of products timed to hit the market over the next 12 months, John is ideally experienced to lead the business as we seek to promote our products to a global audience."
Myconostica has recently launched both FXGTM : RESP (Asp +), the world's only Real-Time PCR molecular diagnostic test which simultaneously detects both Aspergillus and Pneumocystis, and MycXtraTM, a kit for the extraction of fungal DNA from clinical respiratory samples. Fungal pneumonia is the leading cause of infectious death both in leukaemia and after bone marrow transplantation and is the most common first manifestation of AIDS. Myconostica's test detects the two most common causes of fungal pneumonia, which account for over 95% of cases, in less than 4 hours. Myconostica will also launch further tests in the FXGTM series targeting other critical fungal infections, such as the fungi causing sepsis and bloodstream infections, such as Candida
For further information please contact:
Amphion Innovations plcCharlie Morgan, Director of Communications +1 212 210 6224 (New York)
Cardew GroupTim Robertson/ Jamie Milton/ Matthew Law +44 020 7930 0777 (London)
Charles Stanley Securities - Nominated Adviser Mark Taylor / Freddy Crossley +44 20 7149 6000
About Amphion Innovations plc
Amphion (LSE: AMP) builds shareholder value in high growth companies in the medical and technology sectors, by using a focused, hands-on company building approach, based on decades of experience in both the US and UK. Amphion has significant shareholding in 10 Partner Companies, developing proven technologies targeting substantial commercial marketplaces, each in excess of $1 billion. Each Partner Company is chosen with the goal of achieving an exit valuation in excess of $100 million.
On the web: www.amphionplc.com
About Myconostica Ltd.
Myconostica Ltd, a UK Manchester-based medical diagnostic company specialises in rapid and highly specific tests for life-threatening fungal infections. Myconostica has its Head Office and laboratories in South Manchester and has strong links to one of the University of Manchester's teaching hospitals, Wythenshawe Hospital and the Regional Mycology Laboratory, Manchester. Founded by Dr. David Denning, Professor of Medicine and Mycology, with assistance from Nick Montague and the University of Manchester. Myconostica has a strong pipeline of products.
On the web: www.myconostica.co.uk