9th Mar 2006 08:08
AstraZeneca PLC09 March 2006 AstraZeneca commences patent infringement litigation against IVAX AstraZeneca announced today that it has filed a lawsuit in the United StatesDistrict Court for the District of New Jersey against IVAX Corporation, IVAXPharmaceuticals, Inc. and Zenith Laboratories, Inc. (collectively "IVAX"), andIVAX's parent, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and its U.S. subsidiary, TevaPharmaceuticals USA, for willful infringement of AstraZeneca's patentsprotecting NEXIUM(R) (esomeprazole magnesium). The lawsuit is in response to an Abbreviated New Drug Application filed by IVAXwith the US Food and Drug Administration regarding IVAX's intent to market ageneric version of AstraZeneca's NEXIUM in the US prior to the expiration offive AstraZeneca Patents: 5,714,504; 5,877,192; 6,369,085; 6,428,810; and6,875,872. The expiration dates for these patents range from 2014 through to2019. AstraZeneca has full confidence in and will continue vigorously to defend andenforce its intellectual property rights protecting NEXIUM. -Ends- March 9, 2006 Media Enquiries: Edel McCaffrey, Tel: +44 (0) 207 304 5034 Steve Brown, Tel: +44 (0) 207 304 5033 Investor Relations: Mina Blair, Tel: +44 (0) 207 304 5084 Jonathan Hunt, Tel: +44 (0) 207 304 5087 Ed Seage, Tel: +1 302 886 4065 Jorgen Winroth, Tel + 1 212 579 0506 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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