Roche has settled with Promega all PCR-related litigation in the United States, Europe and Australia, including the original lawsuit initiated by Roche Diagnostics in 1992. The specific terms of the parties’ agreement are confidential.

"Roche Diagnostics is pleased to reach this agreement with Promega and to close more than a decade of litigation between the two companies," Heino von Prondzynski, CEO Division Roche Diagnostics and Member of Roche’s Corporate Executive Committee said adding, "Moving forward, we will focus on realizing the potential of our patent portfolio, which contains more than 800 patents and applications related to PCR products and methods, particularly those for real-time PCR technologies."

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is a Nobel-prize winning nucleic acid amplification technology that allows minute amounts of genetic material to be amplified into billions of copies in just a few hours. It has enabled many significant advances in the Human Genome project, DNA fingerprinting and in the diagnosis and monitoring of diseases such as AIDS and hepatitis.

PCR is most widely used to perform testing that identifies whether or not a specific gene sequence is present, such as that indicating if a patient has been infected with HIV. Beyond its wide medical applications, PCR has been used to help in our understanding of evolution, human migration and even for use in food safety.

While Roche’s foundational PCR patents recently expired in the US, its patent portfolio contains more than 800 patents and applications related to PCR products and methods. Roche will realize the potential of its continuing patents through new licenses and other alliances that encourage the use of real-time PCR technologies.