Aurinia Taps Abeona’s Max Colao as Chief Commercial Officer

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AUPH]]) has named Max Colao to the newly created position of chief commercial officer. He joins Victoria, BC-based Aurinia from Abeona Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ABEO]]), where he was executive vice president, chief commercial officer, and head of business development. Colao’s experience also includes positions at Alexion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALXN]]) and Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]).

Aurinia’s lead drug, voclosporin, is an experimental treatment for lupus nephritis and focal segmental glomerularsclerosis. In December, Aurinia announced that the drug hit the main goals of a pivotal lupus nephritis study and the company plans to file for FDA approval in the first half of 2020.

Author: Frank Vinluan

Xconomy Editor Frank Vinluan is a business journalist with experience covering technology and life sciences. Based in Raleigh, he was a staff writer at the Triangle Business Journal covering technology, biotechnology and energy before joining MedCityNews.com as North Carolina bureau chief. Prior to moving to North Carolina’s Research Triangle in 2007 he held business reporting positions at The Des Moines Register and The Seattle Times. View all posts by Frank Vinluan