WILMINGTON, Del., July 5, (Reuters) - PE Corp., the parent of Celera Genomics Group , alleged in a lawsuit it filed Wednesday that Affymetrix Inc. products infringe five PE patents used to speed up DNA sequencing and to develop new human therapies.
In papers filed in the U.S. District Court in Delaware, PE alleged that Affymetrix "has long been aware of the patents" but continued to make and sell its GeneChip Probe Array which allegedly infringes the PE inventions. Affymetrix analyses and manages genetic information and is 22 percent owned by Glaxo Wellcome Plc (LSE: GLXO.L - news) .
The lawsuit came as investors shifted their money from software maker stocks to U.S. biotech stocks. Analysts say the hope is for a continuing rebound in the biotech sector that was spurred by last week's announcement that Celera and government researchers had completed the first big step toward mapping the human genetic code.
According to court papers, the patents at issue are used in the synthesis of oligonucleotides and can reduce, sometimes from days to minutes, the time needed to synthesize the genetic building block DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid.
PE, also the parent of PE Biosystems Group , a provider of instruments, software and reagents to the life science industry, wants the court to block Affymetrix from further alleged infringement and to award unspecified but triple damages. An Affymetrix spokeswoman declined comment at this time. |
