The following articles appeared in the September 2005 issue of Biotech Patent News.

Oncolytics issued Canadian reovirus patent

Forest Laboratories and Lundbeck enter into settlement agreement with Alphapharm related to Lexapro patent litigation

Signet’s monoclonal prion antibody 6D11 available

CalbaTech advisory member contributes stem cell intellectual property, ranging from banking of stem cells to regeneration of tissues

Chromos enters into license agreement with Becton Dickinson for T-cell expansion patents

Cambridge Antibody reports recent progress in licensed product candidates

Rib-X granted key antibiotic drug discovery patents

ABAXIS announces licensing of lyophilization technology to Cepheid

Chemokine expands protection of core anti-cancer technology with issuance of new United States patent

BioGenex obtains favorable patent ruling against Ventana

Sirna granted patent covering siRNAs targeting Huntington's Disease

Saliva Diagnostic receives favorable ruling in patent infringement litigation with Chembio Diagnostic Systems

Jury decision reached in BrainLAB patent infringement lawsuit

Appeals court affirms summary judgment in favor of Gen-Probe in Enzo patent lawsuit

Semafore awarded patent covering PI3K prodrug technology targeting central cell signaling pathway

Genentech provides information on Cabilly patent reexamination

Sirna granted patent covering RNAi-mediated inhibition of gene expression

Vaccine development company receives European patent allowance for enhanced immune response

Genetic mutations in brain tumors identified by scientists from Venter Institute, Ludwig Institute, and Johns Hopkins

IMCOR, Alliance, Molecular Biosystems, and GE Healthcare enter into cross-licensing agreement for ultrasound contrast patents

Novo Nordisk sues Sanofi-Aventis for insulin delivery device patent infringement

Focus Diagnostics licenses coronavirus CoV-NL63 from Primagen

Isis expects to earn initial payments of nearly $4 million from Alnylam's recent RNAi collaboration

Power3 Medical files provisional patent application for biomarker-based method to diagnose Alzheimer's Disease

Intermune issued of two composition of matter patents for Actimmune

Cornell obtains United States patent

Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) and Washington University (St. Louis, MO) have patented a method for conferring tolerance to salt stress and drought stress in a monocot plant including transforming the monocot plant with an expression cassette comprising at least one ABRC unit, a minimal promoter, and a DNA molecule that increases tolerance to salt stress and drought stress in plants, wherein the at least one ABRC unit, the minimal promoter, and a DNA molecule are operably linked together to permit expression of the DNA molecule. The present invention also relates to a transgenic monocot plant transformed with a DNA molecule that increases tolerance to salt stress and drought stress operably linked to at least one ABRC unit and a minimal promoter. (US 6,951,971)

Bayer obtains United States patent

Bayer CropScience GmbH (Frankfurt, Germany) has patented nucleic acid molecules which encode enzymes involved in starch synthasis in plants. These enzymes are wheat isoamylases. The invention furthermore relates to vectors and host cells which contain the above-described nucleic acid molecules, in particular to transformed plant cells and plants which can be regenerated from these and which have an increased or reduced activity of the isoamylases according to the invention. (US 6,951,969)

Columbia obtains United States patent

Columbia University (New York, NY) has patented antibodies directed to OLD-35 protein, the product of the OLD-35 gene, which displays enhanced expression during cellular senescence and terminal cell differentiation. (US 6,951,923)

du Pont obtains United States patent

E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Wilmington, DE) has patented a novel tyrosine-inducible tyrosine ammonia lyase enzyme isolated from the yeast Trichosporon cutaneum. This enzyme has a higher activity for tyrosine than for phenylalanine and is useful for the production of para-hydroxycinnamic acid directly from tyrosine. The gene encoding this enzyme was sequenced using 3 and 5 RACE cloning of the TAL cDNA and the gene was expressed in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and in the bacterium Escherichia coli. (US 6,951,751)

Human Genome Sciences obtains United States patent

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Rockville, MD) and University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI) have patented Death Domain Containing Receptor (DR3 and DR3-V1) proteins which are members of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family. In particular, isolated nucleic acid molecules are provided encoding the human DR3 and DR3-V1 proteins. DR3 and DR3-V1 polypeptides are also provided, as are vectors, host cells and recombinant methods for producing the same. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of DR3 and DR3-V1 activity. (US 6,951,735)

Ruan obtains United States patent

Ruan, et al. has patented a "cocktail" combination of two monoclonal antibodies respectively acting on different sites of the platelet GPIIb-IIIa complex. This "cocktail" combination can completely block receptor function of the GPIIb-IIIa complex, inhibit platelet aggregation and thereby efficiently inhibit thrombosis. (US 6,951,645)

du Pont obtains United States patent

E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Wilmington, DE) has patented gene combinations resulting in novel lipid profiles of soybean seeds and oil extracted from such seeds. Methods for making such combinations are also described. In addition, the oils of this invention are disclosed to be useful in the manufacture of margarine and spread products. (US 6,949,698)

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique obtains United States patent

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France) has patented the intron and exon structure of the gene encoding 3-adrenergic receptor polypeptides of mouse and human origin, which polypeptides are useful in a procedure for studying the effects of various chemical agents on the 3 adrenergic receptor coupled to adenylate cyclase and hormone-sensitive lipases. (US 6,949,636)

Human Genome Sciences obtains United States patent

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Rockville, MD) has patented a novel member of the tumor necrosis factor family of receptors. In particular, isolated nucleic acid molecules are provided encoding the human TR9 receptor. TR9 polypeptides are also provided as are vectors, host cells and recombinant methods for producing the same. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of TR9 receptor activity. (US 6,949,358)

Microbia obtains United States patent

Microbia, Inc. (Cambridge, MA) has patented improved production of commercially important secondary metabolites by fungi. The invention provides methods for improving secondary metabolite production in a fungus, comprising modulating the expression of a gene involved in regulation of secondary metabolite production. (US 6,949,356)

Abbott obtains United States patent

Abbott Laboratories (Abbott Park, IL) has patented methods for using macrolide anti-infective agents. The macrolide anti-infective agents demonstrate antibacterial activity against multi-drug resistant strains of bacteria and, in particular, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Methods for inhibiting the activity of multi-drug resistant bacterial organisms and methods for treating a bacterial infection caused by such organisms are described herein. (US 6,946,446)

University of California obtains United States patent

University of California (Oakland, CA) and Chiron Corporation (Emeryville, CA) has patented gene delivery vectors, such as, for example, recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors, and methods of using such vectors for use in treating or preventing diseases of the eye. (US 6,943,153)

Human Genome Sciences obtains United States patent

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Rockville, MD) and University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI) have patented Death Domain Containing Receptor-4 (DR4) proteins which are members of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family. In particular, isolated nucleic acid molecules are provided encoding the human DR4 proteins. DR4 polypeptides are also provided as are vectors, host cells and recombinant methods for producing the same. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of DR4 activity. (US 6,943,020)

Deltagen obtains United States patent

Deltagen, Inc. (San Carlos, CA) has patented nucleotide constructs and methods for making DNA constructs useful for introducing sequences into and disrupting the function of a gene in a cell, particularly an embryonic stem cell. (US 6,942,995)