Contact Information: Contact: Henry Stimpson Stimpson Communications 508-647-0705 HStimpson@StimpsonCommunications.com Sara Crocker Wolf Greenfield 617-646-8231 scrocker@wolfgreenfield.com
Wolf Greenfield Wins Three More Years of Patent Protection for Shire Pharmaceuticals' ELAPRASE
| Source: Wolf Greenfield
BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - August 15, 2008) - Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, P.C., a Boston
intellectual property law firm, has announced that, on behalf of its
client, Shire Pharmaceuticals, it has recently obtained an additional 1,126
days of patent term for ELAPRASE (idursulfase), a treatment for patients
with Hunter Syndrome (Mucopolysaccharidosis II, MPS II). Hunter syndrome is
a rare, life-threatening genetic condition that results from the absence or
insufficient levels of the lysosomal enzyme iduronate-2-sulfatase. Without
this enzyme, cellular waste products accumulate in tissues and organs,
which then begin to malfunction.
Shire's ELAPRASE product is the first and only treatment approved for
people suffering from Hunter syndrome. The product, which is given as
weekly infusions, replaces the missing enzyme that Hunter syndrome patients
fail to produce in sufficient quantities.
Shire is the exclusive licensee of patent #5,932,211 ('211 patent), which
covers ELAPRASE. The '211 patent had an original expiration date of August
3, 2016. The Certificate Extending Patent Term extends the expiration of
the '211 patent up to September 3, 2019 -- more than an additional 3 years.
The market for ELAPRASE is estimated to exceed $300 million/year.
The Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984 (known
as the "Hatch-Waxman Act") established the ability for companies to recoup
some of the patent term lost during the lengthy FDA approval process
required to market a drug, biologic, or medical device in the US.
Wolf Greenfield attorneys have assisted clients with Patent Term Extension
issues for drugs, biologics, and medical devices. Shareholder Michael
Siekman is available as expert source on issues relating to patent term
extensions.
Founded in 1986, Shire Limited is a global specialty biopharmaceutical
company with revenues for the full year 2007 of $2.44 billion. Its world
headquarters are in Basingstoke, UK and its US headquarters are in Wayne,
Pennsylvania.
Wolf Greenfield, the largest law firm in New England devoted exclusively to
intellectual property law, serves companies that make everything from
pharmaceuticals to software to electronics to snowboards, as well as
representing academic research centers. The firm counsels clients in the
areas of patents, trademarks, copyrights, designs, trade secrets, and
related licensing and litigation. Web: www.wolfgreenfield.com