BRANFORD, Conn., Aug. 5 CT-Marinus-Pharma.
BRANFORD, Conn., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Marinus Pharmaceuticals, a
developer of specialty therapeutics to treat serious neurological, psychiatric
and pain disorders, has appointed John Krayacich as president and chief
executive officer. Mr. Krayacich will be responsible for leading the company's
drug and business development for ganaxolone, an adult and pediatric epilepsy
candidate in Phase II, and chelerythrine, a pre-clinical schizophrenia
candidate.
Mr. Krayacich brings more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical
product development with 13 years focused on neuroscience diseases. Most
recently, he was with Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation where he served as
global program head for the antidepressant agomelatine, and vice president and
global head of neuroscience project management.
"We are pleased that John is taking the helm at Marinus, particularly at
such a crucial stage of development of the company's lead compound,
ganaxolone, a new class of epilepsy treatment," said Stephen Bloch, chair of
the board of directors and general partner of Canaan Partners. "Marinus has
developed an innovative formulation of ganaxolone which we believe sets a
foundation for positive clinical outcomes and makes Marinus an exciting
investment opportunity."
Prior to Novartis, Mr. Krayacich was vice president of worldwide neurology
marketing with Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Group, and Parke-Davis Global Marketing
Planning (Atherosclerosis). He was actively involved in the development,
strategic marketing planning and/or launch of more than seven neuroscience and
cardiovascular compounds including Lipitor(R), Neurontin(R), Lyrica(R),
Rebif(R) and the Exelon(R) patch. He has led teams involved in the development
and marketing of products for epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's
disease, neuropathic pain, depression, anxiety, Multiple Sclerosis and bipolar
disorder.
"I am thrilled to join the Marinus team and to shepherd the company's
promising compounds through clinical development and closer to
commercialization," said Mr. Krayacich. "I have committed my career to the
development of novel therapies that address unmet patient needs and I'm
excited about the innovative candidates in the Marinus pipeline."
About Marinus Pharmaceuticals
Marinus Pharmaceuticals is a privately held specialty pharmaceutical
company that is dedicated to the identification, development, and
commercialization of novel drugs to treat serious neurological, psychiatric
and pain disorders. Its lead compound, ganaxolone, is a synthetic analog of
the neurosteroid allopregnanolone (3a,5a-P), a metabolite of progesterone. It
is currently being investigated in a Phase IIb clinical trial as a potential
treatment of epilepsy in children (infantile spasms) and complex partial
seizures in adults. Chelerythrine is currently in pre-clinical development for
the treatment of bipolar disorder and the cognitive deficits of schizophrenia.
Marinus' investors include Domain Associates, Canaan Partners, Sofinnova
Ventures and Foundation Medical Partners. For additional information, please
visit http://www.marinuspharma.com.
About Domain Associates
Domain Associates, LLC is a venture capital firm focused on health care
product opportunities including biopharmaceuticals, medical devices and
related businesses. Over its 23 year history, Domain has been involved in the
creation of over 200 companies. Its latest venture capital fund is Domain
Partners VII, L.P., which is capitalized at $700 million. Domain is located
in Princeton, NJ and in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit
http://www.domainvc.com.
About Canaan Partners Healthcare
Canaan Partners invests in visionary entrepreneurs and provides them the
networks, insights and operational guidance required to build high-performance
technology and healthcare companies. For 20 years, the partners have taken an
active and committed role in the companies in which they invest, and have
completed more than 69 mergers and acquisitions and 52 IPOs. With $3 billion
under management and a worldwide footprint, the firm's healthcare team is
committed to catalyzing the development of biopharmaceutical, medical device,
diagnostic and therapeutics companies that are revolutionizing the practice of
medicine. Among recent successes are Cerexa Inc., one of the largest biotech
acquisitions of 2007; Advanced BioHealing, a leader in regenerative medicine;
and Dexcom Inc., the largest diagnostic IPO of 2005. Other Canaan healthcare
investments include Amicus Therapeutics, Chimerix, Inc., ReVision Optics,
Inc., and Transoma Medical, Inc. Canaan has offices in California,
Connecticut, India and Israel. For more information, visit
http://www.canaan.com.
About Sofinnova Ventures
Sofinnova Ventures is a diversified venture capital firm focused on early-
stage biopharmaceutical and technology investing. Sofinnova's mission is to
provide entrepreneurs with the resources, experience and networks necessary to
turn their ideas into thriving businesses. Our life sciences team consists of
a seasoned team of five investors and senior executives with deep technical,
strategic, and operational experience. Founded in 1974, Sofinnova currently
manages over $1 billion and is investing out of its $375M seventh fund.
Sofinnova has offices in San Francisco and San Diego. For more information,
visit http://www.sofinnova.com.
About Foundation Medical Partners
Foundation Medical Partners is a venture capital investment firm
affiliated with The Cleveland Clinic Foundation. The firm is focused solely on
health care with a special interest in medical devices, biopharmaceutical
platforms and products, and other opportunities in health care including
diagnostics, health care services, and health care information systems.
Foundation is based in Rowayton, Connecticut.
SOURCE Marinus Pharmaceuticals
