VIMRX Pharmaceuticals’ Irvine Unit to Buy Out Rival That Violated Patents

The Irvine unit of Delaware-based VIMRX Pharmaceuticals Inc. agreed to buy assets of a competitor that lost a patent infringement lawsuit.

VIMRX’s Nexell Therapeutics unit--owned 80% by its Delaware parent and 20% by Baxter Healthcare Corp.--said it will exchange $3 million in VIMRX stock for certain assets of CellPro Inc., of Bothell, Wash. The assets include intellectual property, patents, research, licenses and related items.

In August, a federal appeals court upheld a lower-court ruling that found CellPro willfully infringed on patents for technology held by Baxter and others.

Both CellPro and Nexell sell devices using the technology for selecting cells from blood so that they can be re-injected. In one application, stem cells are removed and re-injected to help restore a cancer patient’s immune system after chemotherapy.

CellPro also said Monday that it plans to file for reorganization under federal bankruptcy law.

A VIMRX spokeswoman said Baxter will distribute CellPro’s cell-selection device in the U.S. until Nexell’s device is approved by federal authorities. Nexell sells the device overseas and is VIMRX’s sole source of revenue.

For the first six months, VIMRX posted a loss of $21 million, or 31 cents a share, on sales of $9 million.