8th Jan 2016 12:46
LONDON (Alliance News) - Premaitha Health PLC on Friday said it US medical tools maker Illumina Inc has filed two patent infringement suits, one of which is against Premaitha's Polish customer.
Premaitha, which is behind the IONA non-invasive pre-natal test, also said Illumina has taken a similar action against Ariosa Diagnostics, a subsidiary of Swiss group Roche, and their customers, The Doctors Laboratory, in the UK.
Premaitha said it continues to make a robust defence of the claims made by Illumina and is confident the IONA test does not infringe the patents, as Illumina has claimed.
"These lawsuits are a continuation of attempts by Illumina to restrict competition in the European NIPT market. We believe pregnant women should not be denied choice in their decisions for prenatal care," said Stephen Little, Premaitha's chief executive.
Shares in Premaitha were down 10% on the news to 16.25 pence.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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