Board of Directors
Robert J. Bitterman – President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director – Robert J. Bitterman joined us in September 2005 as our President, Chief Executive Officer, and a director. From September 2004 until April 2005, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Isolagen, Inc., a publicly traded international bioscience company possessing a proprietary technology for application of human autologous fibroblasts. From 1994 until 2004, Mr. Bitterman served as President and General Manager of Aventis Global Dermatology (f/k/a Dermik Laboratories), the global dermatological strategic business unit of Aventis S.A., where he worked on numerous commercial product launches in the US and other strategic international markets. Prior to assuming senior operational leadership positions, Mr. Bitterman held various positions of increasing responsibility in financial and commercial capacities within Aventis S.A. Also during his tenure with Aventis, Mr. Bitterman was responsible for constructing and managing an operating joint venture in the People’s Republic of China. Mr. Bitterman holds an A.B. degree in Economics from The College of the Holy Cross and a Master of Business Administration degree from Boston University. He is a member of the Woman’s Dermatology Society and the Philadelphia Business Leaders Network. He also holds a Doctorate of Human Letters (Honoris Causa) from the New York College of Podiatric Medicine.
Stephen C. Rocamboli, J.D. – Director and Secretary– Stephen C. Rocamboli has served as a director of ours since May 2005 and served as our secretary from May 2005 until November 2006 and as of July 20, 2010 he was reappointed as Secretary. Mr. Rocamboli has been in the business of founding, operating and financing biopharmaceutical companies for over ten years. He is currently President of Pear Tree Pharmaceuticals, founded in July 2007 for the purpose of developing quality pharmaceutical products to treat the unique and unmet needs of aging women. Prior to joining Pear Tree, Mr. Rocamboli was Senior Managing Partner and General Counsel at Paramount Biosciences, LLC, a venture firm in the business of founding biopharmaceutical companies, and Paramount BioCapital, Inc., a FINRA and SEC registered broker dealer from August 2004 to August 2007. Mr. Rocamboli was Deputy General Counsel of Paramount from September 1999 through August 2004. Prior to working at Paramount, Mr. Rocamboli practiced law in the healthcare field. Mr. Rocamboli is a graduate of Fordham University School of Law (J.D.) and the State University of New York at Albany (B.A.).
Geert Cauwenbergh, Dr. Med. Sc. – Director- Dr. Cauwenbergh was appointed as a Director on July 9, 2010. In August 2008, Dr. Cauwenbergh was named CEO and Chairman of RHEI Pharmaceuticals. In February 2008, Dr. Cauwenbergh founded Phases123, LLC, a company focused on high potential health care technology platforms and emerging health care companies. Prior to founding Phases123, LLC, Dr. Cauwenbergh founded Barrier Therapeutics, Inc. (“Barrier”) in 2001; a biopharmaceutical company with focus on R&D of drugs for treatment of skin diseases. He raised private financing for Barrier in May of 2002 and Barrier became a public company on NASDAQ (Symbol: BTRX) in April of 2004. Prior to founding Barrier, Dr. Cauwenbergh was Vice President of Technology of the Johnson & Johnson Consumer and Personal Care Products Companies. Dr. Cauwenbergh has authored over 100 publications and has been guest editor of a number of books in mycology and infectious diseases. He received his Doctorate in Medical Sciences from the Catholic University of Leuven, Faculty of Medicine, where he also completed his masters and undergraduate work.
Robert M. Infarinato, Esq., CPA –Director – Mr. Infarinato was appointed as a Director on June 17, 2010 and was appointed Chair of our Audit Committee on June 23, 2010. He is currently a business consultant. His career has included senior financial executive positions, primarily at publicly listed Fortune 500 companies in the pharmaceutical industry. He was Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Rosenbluth International Inc., a privately-held travel management firm based in Philadelphia, PA with approximately 5,000 employees, from 1998 until 2000. He was Vice President—Taxation at Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, Inc. in Fort Washington, PA from 1986 until 1998. For approximately 18 months he simultaneously served as Vice President—Corporate Controller when the company was named Rorer Group, Inc. From 1985 to 1986 he was Vice President—Taxation at Serono SA, based in Boston, MA. At Revlon Inc. he was Vice President--International Tax Planning at their corporate headquarters in New York, NY from 1978 until 1985. Starting in 1974 he was a Tax Attorney at Pfizer, Inc. (in New York, NY) and then Tax Manager--Europe and Treasurer—Pfizer Europe based in Brussels, Belgium until 1978. He began his career at Price Waterhouse Coopers in New York City in 1970 and departed as a Senior Accountant in 1974. He has a BS in Accounting from Syracuse University and a JD from Fordham Law School in New York. He is Vice Chair and Chair-Elect of the Board of Trustees at Abington Health, Abington, PA, a not-for-profit health system with nearly 800 licensed beds and over 6,000 employees. He is currently serving his third term as Chair of the Finance Committee at Abington Health.
Gregory F. Zaic – Director – Mr. Zaic was named as a Director in December 2008 and Chair of the Compensation Committee on June 23, 2010. Mr. Zaic is currently a general partner of Nexus Medical Partners, a private equity firm specializing in healthcare investments. He has over 20 years of venture capital investment experience, having played a leadership role in the management of six venture capital funds. He has been an active Board member of both public and private corporations, providing assistance and guidance on issues associated with business strategy, corporate expansion, organizational development, and becoming successful publicly traded companies. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Sabal Medical, Inc. (hospital medication delivery systems), Xylos Corporation (biomaterials) and Aethon Corporation (hospital robotic transport). Mr. Ziac was responsible for Nexus’s very successful investment in Biodel (novel insulin formulation). Prior to joining Nexus, Mr. Zaic was a general partner of Prince Ventures, an independent, medically focused, venture capital partnership. His investments included PerSeptive Biosystems (bioseparations products) that was sold to Perkin Elmer for over $300 million. During the 1980s, Mr. Zaic was Vice President and Special Limited Partner of the Vista Group, a venture capital firm. He was a founding investor in numerous successful companies including Focus Healthcare, an HMO that was sold to Lincoln National Insurance Company for a substantial return. From 1972 until 1979, Mr. Zaic was an executive with Baxter Laboratories. His three member team was responsible for bringing CAPD (Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis) into Baxter, where it became the second-most profitable product line in the company, then accounting for approximately 20% of Baxter’s total profits. Mr. Zaic received a BS in aerospace and mechanical engineering from Princeton University; an MS in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); and an MS from MIT’s Sloane School of Management.
Committees of the Board of Directors
The Board of Directors resolved to establish an audit committee and a compensation committee on June 23, 2010. The Board also appointed Robert Infarinato as Chair of the Audit Committee and Gregory Zaic as Chair of the Compensation Committee with additional members to be appointed.
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
Our Board of Directors has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that applies to all of our employees, officers, and directors, including our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and other principal executive and senior financial officers.
