Idenix Pharmaceuticals Announces Decision by the United States Patent and Trademark Office Patent Trial and Appeal Board in the
March 22 2013 - 3:12PM
Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:IDIX), a biopharmaceutical
company engaged in the discovery and development of drugs for the
treatment of human viral diseases, today announced that the United
States Patent and Trademark Office Patent Trial and Appeal Board
(USPTO) issued a decision in the first phase of the ongoing
interference concerning one of the Company's patent applications
(U.S. Patent Application 12/131,868) and an issued patent ( U.S.
Patent 7,429,572) owned by Gilead Pharmasset LLC ("Gilead") that
covers certain 2'-methyl- 2'-fluoro nucleoside compounds useful in
the treatment of the hepatitis C virus.
An interference is an adversarial proceeding declared by the
USPTO when a party has a U.S. patent application that covers the
same invention as another patent application or issued patent to
determine priority of invention in the United States. An
interference proceeding is divided into two stages. The first phase
determines the application filing dates each party will have
benefit of for the interfering subject matter. The party with
the benefit of the earliest application filing date is deemed the
'senior party' and the party with the later date is deemed the
'junior party'. The second phase determines who was first to
invent. The party who is deemed first to invent prevails in
the interference proceeding.
Today the USPTO issued a decision whereby Idenix was determined
to have a later application filing date than Gilead. Therefore
Idenix was determined to be the 'junior party' and Gilead the
'senior party' in the interference. The second phase of the
interference is expected to commence in the second quarter of 2013
and, as noted above, will determine which party was first to
invent. The decision that Idenix is the junior party does not
determine which party will be deemed first to invent and ultimately
prevail in the interference.
Idenix does not believe that the patent application at issue in
the interference is relevant to any of the compounds currently
under development, including IDX719, its NS5A inhibitor which is
expected to begin phase II studies in the first half of 2013, or
its uridine nucleoside for which the Company expects to file
an investigational new drug application in the first half of
2013.
ABOUT IDENIX
Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., headquartered in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, is a biopharmaceutical Company engaged in the
discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of human viral
diseases. Idenix's current focus is on the treatment of patients
with hepatitis C infection. For further information about Idenix,
please refer to www.idenix.com.
CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST INFORMATION
Idenix will hold a conference call on Monday, March 25, 2013 at
8:00 a.m. ET. To access the call please dial (877) 640-9809
U.S./Canada or (914) 495-8528 International and enter passcode
28471980 or to listen to a live webcast go to "Events &
Presentations" in the Idenix Investor Center at www.idenix.com. A
replay of the call will also be available from 11:00 a.m. ET on
March 25, 2013 until April 1, 2013, at 11:59 p.m. ET. To access the
replay, please dial (855) 859-2056 U.S./Canada or (404) 537-3406
International and enter passcode 28471980. An archived webcast will
also be available for one week after the call on the Idenix
website.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" for
purposes of the safe harbor provisions of The Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to the
statements regarding the Company's future business and financial
performance. For this purpose, any statements contained herein that
are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking
statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words "expect,"
"will," "believe," and similar expressions are also intended to
identify forward-looking statements, as are expressed or implied
statements with respect to future actions taken by the Company,
including any expressed or implied statements regarding future
litigation or adverse proceedings. Actual results may differ
materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements
as a result of risks and uncertainties, including but not limited
to the following: the Company's ability to obtain, maintain and
enforce patent and other intellectual property protection for its
product candidates and its discoveries. Such forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that may cause actual results to be materially different
from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by such statements. These and other risks which may impact
management's expectations are described in greater detail under the
heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2012 as filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in any subsequent periodic or
current report that the Company files with the SEC.
All forward-looking statements reflect the Company's estimates
only as of the date of this release (unless another date is
indicated) and should not be relied upon as reflecting the
Company's views, expectations or beliefs at any date subsequent to
the date of this release. While Idenix may elect to update these
forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it
specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, even if the
Company's estimates change.
CONTACT: Idenix Pharmaceuticals Contacts:
Kelly Barry (617) 995-9033 (media)
Teri Dahlman (617) 995-9807 (investors)
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