MorphoSys AG announced that the Japanese Patent Office has granted a new patent covering its CysDisplay technology. CysDisplay is a proprietary screening technology, which is an important component of MorphoSys's proprietary HuCAL platform. The new patent (JP 4312403) entitled "Novel Methods for Displaying (Poly) Peptides/Proteins on Bacteriophage Particles" describes a selection technology based on phage display for selecting high affinity antibodies. The claims are not limited to the use of a HuCAL library with this selection technology. Additional applications, including continuation applications, are currently pending in different countries.

"This new patent expands the protection of our proprietary core technology HuCAL in Asia. Over the last few years we have built a strong intellectual property portfolio around our proprietary technology HuCAL, which lies at the heart of our successful partnership-based business model. We expect to continue to strengthen still further our IP position in this important market for antibody-based products and services," commented Dr Simon Moroney, chief executive officer of MorphoSys AG.

MorphoSys's HuCAL libraries are collections of highly diverse, fully human synthetic antibodies, whose modular CDR designs facilitate systematic engineering of antibody properties. The company's most advanced marketed version, HuCAL PLATINUM, provides rapid access to fully human antibodies as research tools, diagnostics and therapeutics. HuCAL patents have been granted in the United States, Australia, and at the European Patent Office. In total, the company is prosecuting about thirty different proprietary patent families worldwide, which comes in addition to approximately thirty patent families the company is pursuing in cooperation with its partners.

MorphoSys is a publicly traded biotechnology company focused on the generation of fully human antibodies as a means to discover and develop innovative antibody-based drugs against life-threatening diseases.