AxoGen Appoints New Chief Financial Officer

AxoGen Inc. has a new chief financial officer (CFO).

The company recently appointed Lee Robert Johnston Jr. to the position, replacing Gregory Freitag, who now will assume the role of general counsel and senior vice president of business development. He also will continue to serve on AxoGen’s Board of Directors.

Johnston reports directly to President/CEO Karen Zaderej.

“At this stage in AxoGen’s growth trajectory, it is vital to create more focus for the CFO role. Bob’s wealth of healthcare financial experience and leadership in emerging growth companies will be a great addition to the management team as we propel AxoGen to the next level in our development,” said Zaderej. “At the same time, Greg’s transition to the position of General Counsel and SVP of Business Development will allow him to better support the growth of the business while maintaining efficiencies in legal contracting, public company requirements and development efforts.”

With 20 years of financial and operational experience in the healthcare sector, Johnston will be responsible for AxoGen’s global finance and administrative functions, including financial planning and analysis, tax, investor relations, and human resources. Prior to joining AxoGen, he was the senior vice president of Corporate Development and CFO of Scientific Protein Laboratories LLC, a pharmaceutical company recently acquired by Hepalink. As CFO and chief operating officer of Ascension Orthopedics Inc., he helped to complete the sale of the company to Integra LifeSciences Corporation. Prior to that, Johnston served as CFO of Tutogen Medical GmbH, facilitating its sale to RTI Biologics Inc. (now RTI Surgical Inc.). Earlier in his career, he held senior financial positions in several high growth healthcare companies.  

“AxoGen’s product portfolio is resonating with surgeons and I am very excited to join the leadership team to build on their success,” said Mr. Johnston.

“It is exciting that the company’s growth has reached the point we envisioned following our 2011 merger and that it is now time to separate the roles of CFO and General Counsel,” Freitag said. “I welcome Bob to the team and look forward to focusing my attention in those areas that will further develop AxoGen’s presence in the nerve repair market.”

AxoGen develops peripheral nerve repair technology. Its portfolio of regenerative medicine products is available in the United States, Canada and several European countries and includes Avance Nerve Graft, the only off-the-shelf commercially available processed nerve allograft for bridging severed nerves without the comorbidities associated with a second surgical site, AxoGuard Nerve Connector, a porcine submucosa extracellular matrix (“ECM”) coaptation aid for tensionless repair of severed nerves, and AxoGuard Nerve Protector, a porcine submucosa ECM product used to wrap and protect injured peripheral nerves and reinforce the nerve reconstruction while preventing soft tissue attachments.

Avance Nerve Graft is processed in the United States by AxoGen. AxoGuard Nerve Connector and AxoGuard Nerve Protector are manufactured in the United States by Cook Biotech Incorporated, and are distributed exclusively by AxoGen. The company is based in Alachua, Fla., and is the parent of its wholly owned operating subsidiary, AxoGen Corporation.