Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces Addition of VP of Finance

GAITHERSBURG, Md., July 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced the appointment of Dave Lemus as its new vice president of finance, effective July 1, 2011.  Lemus will join the leadership team at Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals U.S. corporate headquarters in Gaithersburg, Md.

For the past 13 years, Lemus served as chief financial officer of MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment; TecDAX), one of the Europe's leading biotechnology companies focused on fully human antibodies.  In this position, he held responsibilities for a variety of areas, including corporate development, technical operations, corporate legal, human resources, and public and investor relations.  In 1999, Lemus led the effort to take the company public, successfully completing Germany's first-ever biotech initial public offering.  For the next decade thereafter, he played a central role in helping grow the company into one of Europe's leading life science companies.

"I'm very pleased to become part of the Sigma-Tau growth story going forward as its new vice president of finance," commented Lemus.  "Moreover, Sigma-Tau's considerable expertise in rare diseases will continue to play a decisive role in propelling the company's high rate of growth and expansion over the coming years."

Prior to his role at MorphoSys AG, Lemus was a controller and operations manager at Hoffmann-La Roche, and preceding this position, he served as the treasurer of the Lindt Chocolate Company.

"As a leader in the development and commercialization of medicines for rare diseases, we have undergone tremendous growth in the past few years," said Gregg Lapointe, CEO, Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc.  "In looking to the future, it's imperative we have talented people like Dave to help Sigma-Tau continue to bring innovation to the field of rare diseases.  We're very pleased to welcome him to the team."

Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is dedicated to creating novel medicines for the unmet needs of patients with rare diseases.  

About Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a U.S.-based, wholly owned subsidiary of the Sigma-Tau Group, and is dedicated solely to the global development and commercialization of medicines for patients with rare diseases.  Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is based in Gaithersburg, Md.  Since 1989, the company's products have been focused on rare diseases, including kidney disease, certain genetic disorders and cancers.  With more than 7,000 identified rare diseases that affect approximately 25 million patients in the United States, Sigma-Tau places its considerable scientific resources behind the development and commercialization of compounds that benefit the few.  The company has a substantial development program focused on transplant, cancer, inherited genetic disorders, malaria and other areas of unmet medical need.  For more information about the company, visit www.sigmatau.com.

SOURCE Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals, Inc.