The experimental hepatitis C treatment that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) wants to take into clinical trials this year has run into an unexpected hitch: a patent for the compound was awarded to another pharmaceutical company. Biota was granted the patent in “an apparent error,” BioCryst said in a March 12 securities filing. The Feb. 21 patent […]
Drug delivery technology developed by BioDelivery Sciences International (NASDAQ:BDSI) has withstood another patent challenge from competitor MonoSol Rx. Specialty pharmaceutical company BDSI said that the U.S Patent and Trademark Office has rejected all of the claims asserted by MonoSol in the latest patent claim. Both companies have technologies that deliver drugs via a small piece […]
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
BioDelivery Sciences International (NASDAQ:BDSI) stands to gain a $15 million milestone payment after getting word that its drug delivery technology will be granted a patent for two drug treatments. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued BDSI a notice of allowance, which means that patent officials have reviewed the patent application and determined it […]
North Carolina biotechnology company Precision BioSciences has secured a patent victory for its genome engineering technology. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has rejected claims from French company Cellectis that alleges that Precision is infringing on a Cellectis patent. The USPTO decision rejects Cellectis’ claims as being anticipated by or obvious in the context of […]
The government is working on shoring up patent processing for 2012, a move that can only help Uncle Sam’s relationship with healthcare entrepreneurs. The U.S. government has stepped up its public relations effort for healthcare entrepreneurs, most likely to build support for the polarizing and controversial Health Care Reform Act, which is already in operation […]
This post is sponsored by Benesch. Newsflash — both houses of the U.S. Congress and the President agreed on something! Yes, our government agreed, by a wide margin, that it was necessary to modernize our patent laws and did so when it passed the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act or AIA on September 16, 2011. A […]
North Carolina biotechnology company DARA BioSciences (NASDAQ:DARA) has strengthened its intellectual position by securing five new patents for its drug pipeline. DARA said the five new patents were granted in the United States, Asia and Israel. The Raleigh, North Carolina company has two drug candidates in clinical trials. KRN5500 is in development as a treatment […]
A provision for fast track approval in the Leahy-Smith America Invents Patent Reform Act that went into effect this week could benefit some medical device companies. Meanwhile, it seems unlikely that the immediate changes in the law will have any significant impact with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors. The main reason: Companies in these areas […]
This post is sponsored by Benesch. Medical device and drug companies often contract with independent physicians to assist with product development. In the ideal situation, such physicians become external members of a product development team tasked with developing the next blockbuster product. When all goes according to plan, the team develops a safe and effective […]
The patent cliff facing pharmaceutical companies has been staring down the industry for years, but even as companies now watch former blockbuster drugs tumble off its edge, many of those businesses still remain ill equipped to kick-start their drug pipelines with innovative new drug candidates, according to a new report from the Economist Intelligence Unit. […]
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Researchers at universities, similar to employees of medical device companies, are accustomed to assigning patent rights to their institution in an employment agreement signed during the hiring process. What may not be as obvious is that many non-academic hospitals are now including intellectual property (IP) rights in their physician employment agreements. Hospitals, especially large hospital […]
This post is sponsored by Benesch. Valuation of a start-up is important for a variety of reasons. Obtaining capital, developing partnerships and preparing for an eventual exit strategy are just a few. Valuation is not an exact science but rather the result of judgments relating to the business, and those judgments are based on a […]
Every week, MedCity news highlights the best of its MedCitizens: syndication partners and MedCity News readers who discuss life science current events on MedCityNews.com. Now here's the best of what YOU had to say
Intellectual property protection for DARA BioSciences‘s drug pipeline just got a little more secure. Raleigh, North Carolina-based DARA (NASDAQ:DARA) has been issued nine patents in the United States and around the world, which gives it additional intellectual property protection for compounds being developed as new treatments for diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease and pain. DARA does […]
Pink eye drug AzaSite, a major component of Inspire Pharmaceutical‘s (NASDAQ:ISPH) portfolio and one of the key products sought by Merck (NYSE:MRK) in its $430 million acquisition of the North Carolina company, could soon be facing generic competition. Inspire said in a regulatory filing that generics company Sandoz notified the company that it has submitted […]
