FREDERICK, Md. – Akonni Biosystems, Inc., today announced that it has appointed Jan Smilek as its Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately. Akonni, founded in 2003, is developing and commercializing novel nucleic acid extraction and microarray-based testing systems designed to rapidly and economically analyze biological samples. These systems will be used in clinical laboratory and research settings, and also have industrial manufacturing, biothreat detection, and forensics applications.

Mr. Smilek has extensive professional financial and administrative experience in emerging growth companies. His most recent position was as CFO and Treasurer of Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCMP) where he co-lead the acquisition of Sucampo AG in December 2010, a transaction valued at $80 million. His experience also includes the position of Senior Director – Finance for Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VNDA), where he participated in a successful IPO. Earlier in Mr. Smilek’s career he served as Senior Manager for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he played an active role in public offerings and private placements, mergers and acquisitions for a variety of public and private technology companies with multinational operations. A native of the Czech Republic, he received his bachelor’s degree in economics from the School of Economics in Bratislava, and holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business.

“I’m very delighted and honored to join the exciting team at Akonni under the guidance of Dr. Charles Daitch, who is known as an industry-recognized entrepreneur,” noted Mr. Smilek. “Akonni’s technology and products have the potential to set new standards in genetic testing for healthcare, industrial, biothreat detection and forensics applications. I am looking forward to immediately applying my experience and knowledge to take this dynamic company to the next level.”

Dr. Charles Daitch, CEO of Akonni stated, “I am eager to apply Mr. Smilek’s skills to our business plan. His unique experience and extensive knowledge of the healthcare industry and U.S. public markets make him a perfect fit for the direction and the long-term goals of our company.”

About Akonni Biosystems

Akonni Biosystems was founded in 2003 and has over 20 patents issued with 13 others pending. The Company’s core technology is based on work developed at Argonne National Laboratory and the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology and utilizes gel-drop array technologies optimized for medical applications. Supported by a series of government grants and contracts from NIH, CDC, DOE, DOD, NIJ, and NSF, the Company has significantly advanced the original technology by improving the system’s capabilities from sample preparation to final result. Commercial products and products in its near-term pipeline include rapid sample preparation methodologies for nucleic acid extraction (TruTip) and multiplex panel assays for detecting multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), upper respiratory infections, viral encephalitis, and hospital-acquired infections (MRSA). For more information on Akonni, please visit www.akonni.com.