Baxter sues Minrad over patent

Baxter has sued Minrad, accusing the company of patent infringement as a result of making a generic version of its anaesthetic suprane therapy.

Filed on Friday last week, the case launched by the organisation alleges Minrad filed an abbreviated new drug application.

The patent is scheduled to expire in 2014.

Last month, Baxter’s celvapan treatment received a positive opinion from the European Union’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).

The vaccine – for the treatment of H5N1 (avian flu) – received the endorsement following phase III clinical trials which found it was “well tolerated” and “generated a functional immune response”.

Speaking at the time, Hartmut Ehrlich, vice-president of the organisation’s bioscience global research and development department, said Baxter was “very pleased” to receive the CHMP’s positive opinion.

He added: “This is another step towards our goal of supplying a safe and effective vaccine to protect the population against a possible influenza pandemic.”