Introgen Therapeutics Inc announced that US Patent No. 6,740,320, which broadly covers adenoviral vectors with the tumour suppressor p53 in pharmaceutical compositions, has been issued to the Board of Regents of the University of Texas System and exclusively licensed to Introgen.

This broad patent complements Introgen's expansive adenoviral p53 patent portfolio and is unique because the patent expiration gives Introgen protection for close to ten years longer than some other patents in the portfolio.

David L. Parker, Introgen's vice-president of Intellectual Property said, "This patent is very important to Introgen for two important reasons. One, it broadly covers adenoviral p53 constructs for use in therapeutic applications and is not limited to Introgen's Advexin adenoviral p53 product. We feel that this patent establishes Introgen's control of Advexin specifically and pharmaceutical adenoviral p53 products in general."

Introgen's Advexin therapy uses the adenovirus delivery platform, a very important and frequently used tool in the fields of tumour suppressor therapy and vaccines. Unlike other viral delivery systems, adenoviruses do not mix with a patient's DNA. Rather, they are genetically altered so that they are unable to replicate in humans and also have important properties that lend themselves readily to commercial scale manufacturing.

"Introgen's Advexin therapy is now covered by up to 13 US patents relevant to the product including compositions, therapeutic methods of administering the product in virtually any form, alone and in conjunction with the most widely used chemotherapeutic and radiation treatments, as well as its production," said Dr Parker.