Carter BloodCare CEO Merlyn Sayers, PhD, has been elected president of America's Blood Centers (Washington), North America's largest network of non-profit, community blood centers. He will serve as president for two years. Sayers will take over the presidency from Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Medical Director Louis Katz, MD, who served as president since April 2003. Sayers, a physician with 35 years experience in transfusion science medicine, has served as president and CEO of Carter BloodCare since its formation in 1998. Sayers currently serves as a professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Amy Factor has been appointed interim CEO and a member of the board of Arbios Systems (Los Angeles). Dr. Jacek Rozga, founder of Arbios, will remain the company's president and chief scientific officer. The company said it has begun a search for a permanent CEO. Factor has been a consultant to Arbios since November 2003 and was instrumental in developing and implementing the company's strategic and operational plans. Arbios Systems, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Arbios Technologies, discovers, acquires and develops liver assist devices and new technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of acute liver failure.

Gary Carter has joined CeMines (Golden, Colorado) as vice president of corporate development. Most recently, Carter was responsible for market research at Transgenomic, and also held a similar position at Proligo. CeMines specializes in molecular biology R&D.

Craig Smith has been named president and CEO of Owens & Minor (Richmond, Virginia), effective July 1, as part of a succession plan to replace G. Gilmer Minor III, current chairman and CEO. Minor, who joined the company in 1963, will continue to serve as chairman of the Owens & Minor board. Smith is currently president and chief operating officer, a position he has held since 1999. As a result of Smith's new role at Owens & Minor, Charles Colpo, senior vice president, operations, will assume added responsibilities as senior vice president, operations and technology. Owens & Minor distributes name-brand medical and surgical supplies and is also a healthcare supply chain management company.