Aratana Therapeutics Appoints Louise Mawhinney Chief Financial Officer

KANSAS CITY, Kan. and NEW YORK, Sept. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Aratana Therapeutics, an animal health company developing innovative medicines for cats and dogs (companion animals), today announced it has appointed Louise Mawhinney, CPA, as Chief Financial Officer.  Aratana created the role of CFO within the Company as part of a recent expansion of the senior management team envisioned to accelerate growth and facilitate execution on upcoming milestones.  

Ms. Mawhinney brings more than 15 years of CFO experience to Aratana, including both private and NASDAQ-listed life sciences companies.  Most notably, Ms. Mawhinney led the IPO team that took Helicos BioSciences Corp. public in May 2007 and was the CFO of ArQule, Inc.

Steven St. Peter, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Aratana Therapeutics, stated, "Louise is a very experienced and dynamic executive who is well known within the biotech community.  I had the pleasure of working with Louise when she helped complete Helicos' initial public offering during my tenure as a member of the board.  I am very pleased to work with her again as we accelerate our growth and execute on several upcoming milestones."

Louise Mawhinney, CPA, Chief Financial Officer of Aratana Therapeutics, stated, "I believe Aratana is pioneering a large and growing private-pay market in companion animal medicine, where the need for innovative new therapies is significant.  I look forward to supporting the growth of the Company at this important inflection point. "

Louise Mawhinney, CPA
Prior to joining Aratana Therapeutics, Ms. Mawhinney was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Ikonisys, Inc., a cell-based diagnostics company.  Previously, she was Chief Financial Officer at Helicos BioSciences Corporation, a life sciences company, which Ms. Mawhinney was successful in helping to take public in May 2007.    Prior to Helicos, Ms. Mawhinney was Chief Financial Officer for ArQule, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on oncology.  From 2000-2003, Ms. Mawhinney was Chief Financial Officer, and a founding member, of eSpendwise, a provider of global eBusiness systems. Ms. Mawhinney also served as Chief Financial Officer at The Butcher Company; Group Controller at Lifetime Corporation; and a Senior Tax Specialist at KPMG in Boston.  Ms. Mawhinney holds a Masters Degree from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and has been a CPA in Massachusetts since 1989.

About Aratana Therapeutics
Aratana Therapeutics is an animal health drug development company uniquely positioned to deliver high quality new medicines that address significant therapeutic needs for cats and dogs (companion animals).  Aratana licenses and develops proprietary, patent-protected compounds acquired from human pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and then develops strategies to maximize the value of the programs for the animal health market.  For more information, please visit www.aratanatherapeutics.com.

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SOURCE Aratana Therapeutics