PanOptica, Inc. Appoints Colin Goddard, Former CEO of OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to Board of Directors

MOUNT ARLINGTON, NJ--(Marketwire - April 01, 2011) - PanOptica, Inc., a private biopharmaceutical company focused on licensing and developing innovative ophthalmology therapies, is pleased to announce the appointment of Colin Goddard, PhD to its Board of Directors.

Dr. Goddard served as chief executive officer of OSI Pharmaceuticals from 1998 until the company's $4 billion acquisition by Astellas Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in June of 2010. Goddard joined OSI as a scientist in 1989, and advanced through the ranks as director of drug discovery and pharmaceutical operations, vice president of research operations, executive vice president and chief operating officer, and president until he was named CEO. Dr. Goddard led the approval and launch of OSI's lead product, the cancer drug, Tarceva®. He currently sits on the Board of Trustees at Hofstra University and is a Director of Human Genome Sciences, Inc., Zelos Therapeutics, Inc., and Abilities!, a leading charity for the physically disabled.

"Dr. Goddard has demonstrated his ability to grow and build a startup research venture into a successful, profitable commercial biopharmaceutical organization," said Paul Chaney, co-founder, president, and CEO of PanOptica. "He offers tremendous scientific and business experience and a history of successful collaboration with large biopharma partners, as well as first-hand knowledge of PanOptica's lead compound PAN-90806. We are honored to have him join our team as an independent board member."

Dr. Goddard joins the PanOptica Board of Directors chaired by David Guyer, MD, founder and former CEO of Eyetech Pharmaceuticals and currently partner of SV Life Sciences; Lutz Giebel, PhD, managing partner of SV Life Sciences; Kevin Starr, partner of Third Rock Ventures, and Chaney.

"I look forward to collaborating with individuals who personify excellence in the field of ophthalmology," said Goddard. "Together I hope we can make an impact on the lives of patients suffering from diseases of the eye."

About PAN-90806
PAN-90806 is a potent and selective inhibitor of VEGF, a protein that plays a critical role in angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels) and increased permeability (leakage from blood vessels), two pathological processes that contribute to the vision loss associated with neovascular AMD. In pre-clinical research using ocular angiogenesis models, topically administered PAN-90806 suppressed the formation of new blood vessels. In pharmacokinetic studies conducted in rabbits, topical administration of PAN-90806 achieved significant and sustained levels in the retina and choroid, supporting further investigation of PAN-90806.

About PanOptica
PanOptica, Inc. is a private, venture-backed biopharmaceutical company focused on licensing and developing a portfolio of exciting and innovative therapeutics for major ophthalmic diseases. Since its formation in March 2009 with seed financing from SV Life Sciences, PanOptica has identified and evaluated more than 70 assets to determine the feasibility of re-purposing selected leads for ophthalmic indications. The company was co-founded by Paul Chaney, past president of OSI-Eyetech and Martin Wax, MD, a noted academic clinician scientist working in glaucoma, most recently VP of research and development and head of ophthalmology discovery and pre-clinical development at Alcon Labs, Inc. The company seeks early-stage assets translated from other diseases and develops select candidates through human clinical proof of concept. For more information, please visit www.panopticapharma.com.