Makindus Bolsters Management Team with Appointment of Michael Celano as Chief Financial Officer

DOYLESTOWN, Pa., Sept. 15, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Makindus, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical development company focused on late stage therapies for rare ophthalmic indications, today announced that Michael Celano has been appointed Chief Financial Officer.

Mr. Celano is an accomplished finance and accounting executive with nearly 30 years of senior-level experience in both venture-funded and publicly traded pharmaceutical and life science companies. He brings to Makindus sound business acumen and expertise in public company internal and external financial reporting, accounting and controls, and investor relations. Mr. Celano has a solid track record in growing corporate enterprise value and in successful transactional execution including acquisitions, venture investments, and the sale of publicly-traded companies.

"We are pleased to announce the addition of Mr. Celano as our Chief Financial Officer," remarked Manohar Katakam, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Makindus. "I believe his seasoned financial and transactional leadership experience will be invaluable as we advance Makindus to the next stage of growth. The Company's lead product candidate, MI-100, has both U.S. and E.U. orphan drug designation and is expected to commence Phase 3 clinical studies for the treatment of Stargardt disease in 2016."

Mr. Celano has served on the Board of Directors and as audit committee chair for Orasure Technologies, Inc. since 2006. He most recently was appointed to the Board of Directors of Performance Health, a privately-held consumer branded health, wellness and self-care company. Prior to joining Makindus, he served as Chief Financial Officer for Drugscan, Inc., a high growth private equity funded clinical laboratory services company, and Kensey Nash Corporation, a medical device company with $90 million in annual revenues acquired by Royal DSM (DSM). Previously, Mr. Celano was Chief Financial Officer at BioRexis Pharmaceutical Corporation, a venture funded life sciences company, where he utilized his expertise to help grow the company from a start-up though to its sale to Pfizer, Inc.

"I am very excited to join the Makindus team as we move to the next stage of bringing meaningful therapies to address rare ophthalmic diseases," commented Mr. Celano. "I look forward to working with the team as we advance MI-100, an important therapy for Stargardt disease, into a Phase 3 clinical program."

Mr. Celano was a partner at Arthur Andersen and KPMG during his 24 years in public accounting, and led the U.S Life Sciences Practice. During his public accounting career, he served more than 40 life science clients and was lead audit partner for 17 public life science companies and multiple IPOs. Mr. Celano was the first non-venture capital/investment banker to serve as a Chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Venture Conference and is the Co-Founder of the Association of BioScience Financial Officers. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Accounting from St. Joseph's University.

About Makindus, Inc. 
Makindus is a privately-held, specialty pharmaceutical development company focused on ophthalmology and rare diseases. The Company's lead product candidate is MI-100, a novel ophthalmic formulation of a legacy compound being developed for Stargardt disease, a rare form of juvenile macular degeneration that occurs in approximately 1 in 10,000 individuals. Makindus has met with the FDA and EMA, and is in the final stages of planning a Phase 3 clinical trial program. The Company is seeking partners and additional sources of funding and collaboration for the development program of MI-100 for Stargardt disease. For more information, visit www.makindus.com.

Investor and Media Contact: 
Jenene Thomas 
Jenene Thomas Communications, LLC 
T: (US) 908.938.1475 
E: [email protected]

SOURCE Makindus, Inc.

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http://www.makindus.com