Amgen claims favorable patent ruling |
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Tue, 28 Aug 2007 23:51
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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) - Biotech company Amgen Inc. said Tuesday that a U.S. Federal District Court in Boston ruled that an anemia treatment candidate from Roche infringes one of its patents.Amgen said the court granted its motion for summary judgment and ruled that Roche's pegylated-erythropoietin, also called peg-EPO, would infringe one of Amgen's patents, Amgen said in a press release. Roche's anemia drug, Mircera, is under review at the Food and Drug Administration for treatment related to chronic kidney disease.In response to an AP inquiry, Roche public affairs director Linda Dyson said in an email: 'Today's ruling in Boston is only one step along the way and the trial has yet to begin. While we disagree with the Judge on the matter of infringement, the ruling does not determine the ultimate validity of any Amgen patents.'The case will proceed to trial Sept. 4.Amgen said that in addition to infringing its EPO patents, it believes Roche's peg-EPO product provides no clinical or patient benefit over Amgen's therapies, Epogen and Aranesp.In a separate decision Monday, the court also granted summary judgment in favor of Amgen on certain Roche defenses against the patents-in-suit, Amgen said.In 2006, Amgen asked the U.S. International Trade Commission to investigate whether Roche was infringing Amgen's anemia treatment patents by bringing the compound peg-EPO into the country.Shares fell 91 cents to $49.01 Tuesday, before adding 79 cents to $49.80 in aftermarket activity.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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