MISGAV, Israel & SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Medgenics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MDGN and AIM: MEDU, MEDG), developer of a novel technology for the sustained production and delivery of therapeutic proteins in patients using their own tissue, announces the appointment of a new executive leadership team with the goal of accelerating the development of the companys gene therapy platform and maximizing the value of the companys technology assets. The new executives are Michael Cola, President and Chief Executive Officer, John Leaman, M.D., Chief Financial Officer, and Garry Neil, M.D., Global Head of Research and Development. In addition, on September 13, 2013, Mr. Cola joined the Medgenics Board of Directors.

Andrew L. Pearlman, Ph.D., the companys Founder and previously the companys President and Chief Executive Officer, has retired as of September 13, 2013 and is continuing to serve on the Board of Directors and as a senior advisor to the company.

This executive team will be based in the U.S. R&D and manufacturing will continue to operate in Misgav, Israel and U.S. manufacturing will continue to operate in San Francisco.

Mike Cola is a strategic, entrepreneurial and transformational business leader with a strong record in building shareholder value and broad experience in life science product development and portfolio management. Collectively, the new teams relevant experience and knowledge is impressive and will be integral to Medgenics continued success, said Sol J. Barer, Chairman of the Board of Medgenics. On behalf of the Board and the entire staff at Medgenics, I extend deepest gratitude to Andy Pearlman for his many contributions to our company. Andy has dedicated more than a decade to the development of the Biopump technology, and it is through his efforts and leadership that we have such a strong foundation.

Dr. Pearlman said, "I am pleased to hand over the reins to Mike, who has rightfully earned a position of high regard in the biopharmaceutical industry. Together with John Leaman and Garry Neil, this new executive leadership represents the ideal complement to the existing Medgenics team, and brings the expertise to optimize the clinical and commercial potential of our Biopump technology platform. I am proud and honored to continue as a Director for this outstanding and expanded team, and as an advisor to assist them. Medgenics future looks brighter than ever.

Mr. Cola was most recently President of Shire plcs Specialty Pharmaceuticals business, where he oversaw all aspects of this $2.5 billion enterprise. He joined Shire in 2005 as Executive Vice President of Global Therapeutic Business Units and Portfolio Management. Previously he was with Safeguard Scientifics, where he served as President of the Life Sciences Group. While at Safeguard Scientifics, Mr. Cola served as Chairman and CEO of Clarient, a cancer diagnostics company acquired by GE Healthcare, and as Chairman of Laureate Pharma, a full-service contract manufacturing organization serving research-based biologics companies. Prior to Safeguard Scientifics, Mr. Cola held senior positions in product development and commercialization at AstraMerck, a top 20 U.S. pharmaceutical company, and at AstraZeneca.

Mr. Cola received a BA in biology and physics from Ursinus College and an MS in biomedical science from Drexel University. He serves on the Board of Directors of Vanda Pharmaceuticals, NuPathe and Pennsylvania BIO, the statewide association representing the bioscience community. He also serves as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia.

"It is an honor to lead Medgenics at this exciting time in the companys development," stated Mr. Cola. "Our company is built upon a potential breakthrough technology in gene therapy and protein production that represents a safe and reversible approach that also shows promise to individually dose the production of therapeutic proteins. I am particularly pleased to have Garry and John joining me. Having worked with each of them in the past, I know they have the skills and leadership to advance our gene therapy and protein therapeutics technology and build a successful company. Following a thorough review of our assets and target markets, we look forward to rolling out our teams strategy and advancing Medgenics into what promises to be an exciting future."

Dr. Leaman brings to Medgenics more than a decade of corporate strategy, finance, venture capital and M&A experience in the life sciences industry. Most recently he was Vice President of Commercial Assessment at Shire plc, with responsibility for the strategic assessment of licensing and M&A opportunities, including Shires acquisition of SARcode Bioscience. Prior to joining Shire in 2011, Dr. Leaman was a Principal at Devon Park Bioventures, a venture capital fund targeting investments in therapeutics companies, where he oversaw the funds investment and corporate board duties in life science investments including Proteon Therapeutics, Inc., Inotek Pharmaceuticals Corp., ZS Pharma, Inc. and MicuRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Prior to that, he was an Associate Principal at McKinsey & Company, where he provided consulting services to senior management of several top 20 pharmaceutical companies including M&A and corporate finance, payer/reimbursement strategies and strategic product development.

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Medgenics Announces New Executive Leadership Team

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