Takeda announces victory in patent litigation case

Takeda Pharmaceutical has announced that its subsidiary, Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America, has won its patent infringement lawsuit against Anda Filers on appeal in a case relating to that company’s generic formulation of its drug Actos.

A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuits has upheld both the validity and enforceability of the company’s US patent covering the active ingredient in Actos – pioglitazone hydrochloride – with this decision confirming patent protection for the drug in the US until 2011.

This decision affirms one made by a US District Court for the Southern District of New York in February 206 where Takeda sought to protect its US Patent No 4,687,777 (“777”) against generic drug manufacturers Alphapharm and Mylan Pharmaceuticals.

Seiji Hakoda, general manager of the intellectual property department of the Takeda, commented that the firm always has confidence in its patents, with the company welcoming the court ruling confirming the validity of patent “777”.

“Because innovation is critical to our company, we have a profound respect for the protection of intellectual property rights,” he said.

In November 2006, Takeda cited strong sales of diabetes treatment Actos as a significant contributing factor to its increase in operating profits for the first six months of the financial year.