StemCells, Inc. (NASDAQ:STEM) announced today that the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office (PTO) has upheld the validity of the remaining two
neural stem cell patents which were subjected to reexamination
proceedings commenced by Neuralstem, Inc. The upheld patents are the
subject of two related lawsuits initiated by StemCells against
Neuralstem, which allege infringement of a total of six patents. These
six patents collectively claim the manufacture and use of human neural
stem and progenitor cells as tools for drug discovery and as therapeutic
agents. The PTO’s decision to uphold the two patents is final and cannot
be appealed. Consequently, StemCells is asking the federal district
court in Maryland to resume the infringement lawsuits against Neuralstem.
“The PTO’s latest action is a reaffirmation of the validity of the
patents asserted against Neuralstem. Each of our reexamined patents has
now been twice tested and twice granted by the Patent Office,” said
Martin McGlynn, President and CEO of StemCells, Inc. “We now look
forward to our day in court. Litigation can be a slow and meticulous
process, but we plan to ensure that those who wish to commercialize
neural stem cells for drug discovery or therapeutic uses, recognize the
validity and value of our patents.”
The two most recently upheld patents are U.S. Patent Number 6,294,346
and U.S. Patent Number 7,101,709, which claim, respectively, methods for
using neural stem and progenitor cells for the screening of drugs and
biological agents. In its latest communications, the PTO has issued
Notices of Intent to Issue Ex Parte Reexamination Certificates
for both the ‘346 and ‘709 patents. During the reexamination
proceedings, the Company submitted minor amendments to certain, but not
all, of the claims. With these notices of allowance, the PTO has
affirmed all of the previously issued claims, as amended, and so all of
the reexaminations initiated by Neuralstem have been resolved to
StemCells' satisfaction. There are a total of 173 patent claims going
forward from the six patents involved in the two suits against
Neuralstem.
More About the Litigation Against Neuralstem
StemCells initiated its first lawsuit against Neuralstem in July 2006 in
federal court in Maryland, alleging that Neuralstem’s activities violate
claims in four patents exclusively licensed to StemCells. In late 2006,
Neuralstem petitioned the PTO to reexamine two of the patents in the
case, namely U.S. Patent No. 6,294,346 (claiming the use of human neural
stem cells for drug screening) and U.S. Patent No. 7,101,709 (claiming
the use of human neural stem cells for screening biological agents).
