Sigma起诉一生物公司RNAi专利技术侵权

生物通综合：来自纽约6月14日的消息，Sigma-Aldrich和Oxford BioMedica针对Open Biosystems侵犯其外源DNA导入到哺乳细胞中的两项专利提出起诉。

Sigma-Aldrich and Oxford BioMedica have sued Open Biosystems for allegedly infringing two patents that cover lentiviral-based systems for the delivery of foreign DNA into mammalian cells.

The complaint, filed in US District Court Eastern District of Missouri, alleges that Open Biosystems is infringing US Patent Nos. 6,924,123 and 7,056,699. 

Oxford BioMedica received the rights to the '123 patent in August 2005. It received the rights to the '699 patent last week, according to the US Patent and Trade Organization's database. Both patents are entitled "Lentiviral LTR Deleted Vector" and Oxford BioMedica exclusively licensed them to Sigma-Aldrich for research use in October 2005, the companies said.

Their suit claims that Open Biosystems' Lentiviral shRNAmir Library is being sold for "incorporation into viral particles that infringe one or more claims of the patents." 

Shaf Yousaf, president of Sigma-Aldrich's research biotechnology business unit, said in a statement that the company has made "significant investments in creating the most comprehensive portfolio of intellectual property to allow [its] customers freedom to operate in the cutting-edge arena of RNA Interference" and its "actions will be to defend [its] investments and the valuable intellectual property."

Open Biosystems has not issued a statement.