Genentech Receives U.S. Patent for Heart Medicine
Genentech Inc. gained a U.S. patent Tuesday for its TPA heart medicine, a move that figures to be a major boost for the biotechnology concern.
TPA is an anti-clotting drug used to treat heart-attack victims. TPA, which stands for tissue plasminogen activator and is known commercially as Activase, is a genetically engineered copy of a protein the body produces naturally. If given shortly after a heart attack, it is capable of dissolving the fatty deposits that block blood flow to the heart.
TPA has quickly become a big seller, accounting for $100 million in sales since being introduced in November.
Genentech, based in South San Francisco, said the importance of the patent is that it’s a “composition of matter” patent, meaning it covers the product itself rather than the process by which it is made. The upshot is that rival companies, even if they devise new ways to make TPA, would still be subject to Genentech’s patent.
The company wasted no time in using its new patent. It promptly sued Wellcome Foundation, the British pharmaceutical company, and its U.S. affiliates, among others, for developing a TPA that allegedly infringes on Genentech’s technology.
‘Gives a Monopoly’
The suit, filed in federal court in Delaware, seeks to block the defendants from continuing to develop the version of the drug in dispute, said Genentech spokesman Fred Hoar. The defendants could not be reached for comment.
The patent is “a significant event,” said Jim McCamant, editor of Medical Technology Stock Letter, a securities research publication in Berkeley. “It gives Genentech a monopoly on the U.S. market for TPA.”
He cautioned, however, that the patent “does not mean they will be without competition” because some other companies are developing “completely different” drugs intended to provide the same benefits as TPA.
McCamant said the patent also “is good news for biotechnology generally” because it shows that the industry’s pioneers can receive licensing protection for their new products.
Hoar declined comment on how the new patent would affect the fortunes of Genentech, which posted sales of $218.7 million last year. He also said Genentech would pursue additional patents related to TPA development.
After the company’s announcement, Genentech’s common stock closed at $27.50 a share, up $1.125, in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.
