AMGEN SUES OVER EPOGEN THREE UNITS OF ROCHE ACCUSED OF PATENT INFRINGEMENT.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Staff Writer THOUSAND OAKS - Amgen Inc., the world's biggest biotechnology company, said Wednesday that it has sued three units of Roche Holding AG, claiming patent infringement patent infringement n. the manufacture and/or use of an invention or improvement for which someone else owns a patent issued by the government, without obtaining permission of the owner of the patent by contract, license or waiver. of its popular anti-anemia drug Epogen. The suit was filed late Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Boston against F. Hoffmann-LaRoche Ltd., Roche Diagnostics GmbH and Hoffmann-LaRoche Inc. It alleges that the units of the Basel, Switzerland-based company poached poach 1 tr.v. poached, poach·ing, poach·es To cook in a boiling or simmering liquid: Poach the fish in wine. six patents related to the manufacture of Epogen, which Amgen developed and replicates as erythropoietin erythropoietin /eryth·ro·poi·e·tin/ (-poi´e-tin) a glycoprotein hormone secreted by the kidney in the adult and by the liver in the fetus, which acts on stem cells of the bone marrow to stimulate red blood cell production , a glycoprotein glycoprotein (glī'kōprō`tēn), organic compound composed of both a protein and a carbohydrate joined together in covalent chemical linkage. secreted by the kidneys that stimulates the production of red blood cells Red blood cells Cells that carry hemoglobin (the molecule that transports oxygen) and help remove wastes from tissues throughout the body. Mentioned in: Bone Marrow Transplantation red blood cells . Epogen, based on work by Amgen researcher Dr. Fu-Kuen Lin, now retired, is given to patients with kidney failure kidney failure or renal failure Partial or complete loss of kidney function. Acute failure causes reduced urine output and blood chemical imbalance, including uremia. Most patients recover within six weeks. and those on dialysis. Amgen said the Roche units are importing an anti-anemia product called CERA that contains a product covered by its patents. Thousand Oaks-based Amgen is seeking a permanent injunction blocking this Roche foray into the domestic marketplace. The company declined comment on why the suit was filed in Boston. ``I really can't comment on litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. strategy,'' Amgen spokeswoman Mary Klen said in a statement. Roche, in an e-mail, said it had not seen the suit. ``We are confident that CERA (Continuous Erythropoietin Receptor Activator) does not infringe any of Amgen's U.S. patents ... Moreover, the U.S. patent office thoroughly examined the patentability of CERA and concluded that CERA is a novel molecule that is patentable in its own right,'' the statement said. Its patent was issued in June 2003. Amgen has already prevailed in two other patent-infringement suits involving Epogen. The latest came in October of last year when a federal court judge in Boston ruled in Amgen's favor in its patent dispute with Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. and Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc. At that time, Amgen said the ruling confirmed the strength of its patent rights. Shiv shiv n. Slang A knife, razor, or other sharp or pointed implement, especially one used as a weapon. [Probably Romany chiv, blade.] Noun 1. S. Kapoor, a biotech analyst at Montgomery & Co. in San Francisco, said Amgen has a good reason to aggressively protect Epogen. ``It's a big threat,'' he said of possible competition from Roche. Epogen accounts for about 30 percent of Amgen's total sales, although that is expected to decline to about 26 percent in four years. Roche, if it beats back the Amgen challenge, could snare about $1 billion of Amgen's sales by 2010, he said. Gregory J. Wilcox, (818) 713-3743 greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com |
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