Nuvelo Assigns Patents to SEQUENOM
Wednesday September 17, 9:30 am ET
SUNNYVALE, Calif. and SAN DIEGO, Sept. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Nuvelo, Inc. (Nasdaq: NUVO - News) and SEQUENOM, Inc. (Nasdaq: SQNM - News) today announced a patent assignment and license agreement. Under terms of the agreement, Nuvelo assigned SEQUENOM the entire chemical cleavage patent estate acquired through its merger with VARIAGENICS, including 25 issued and pending patents, as well as an exclusive worldwide license to nine additional restriction enzyme patents. Nuvelo will receive a licensing payment and potential royalties for any eventual revenues from sublicensing of the restriction enzyme patents.
"This agreement strengthens our proprietary position with respect to our MassARRAY(TM) products and expands our potential application offerings," said Toni Schuh, Ph.D., SEQUENOM's President and Chief Executive Officer. "This leverages our ability to develop new applications, such as viral load determination, bacterial and viral typing, DNA methylation analysis and mutation detection. The acquisition of this patent estate strengthens our position as a leader in high-performance DNA analysis."
"We are pleased that we have been able to execute on the monetization of some of the VARIAGENICS assets and place them in the hands of a company that is focused on utilizing them to their fullest potential," said Ted W. Love, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Nuvelo. "The agreement allows Nuvelo to stay focused on its core business, the discovery and development of life improving therapeutics."
About Nuvelo
Nuvelo, Inc., formed by the merger of Hyseq Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and VARIAGENICS, Inc., is engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of life improving therapeutics for the treatment of human disease. Nuvelo's lead product candidate, alfimeprase, is partnered with Amgen and is currently in two Phase II trials in two indications, peripheral arterial occlusion and catheter occlusion. Additional programs include drug discovery focused on antibody targets and secreted proteins.
Information about Nuvelo is available at our new Web site at www.nuvelo.com or by phoning 408-215-4000.
About SEQUENOM
SEQUENOM is a leading genetics company organized into two distinct business units: SEQUENOM Genetic Systems and SEQUENOM Pharmaceuticals. The two business units combine to capitalize on the Company's high performance DNA analysis platform, SNP assay portfolio, disease gene discovery programs and extensive DNA sample repository. SEQUENOM Genetic Systems is dedicated to the sales and support of the Company's MassARRAY products and the continual expansion of platform applications. SEQUENOM Pharmaceuticals applies the power of human genetics to systematically identify disease-related genes that affect significant portions of the overall population. The Pharmaceuticals business unit focuses on disease gene discovery, target identification, functional validation and ultimately diagnostic and therapeutic product development. SEQUENOM® and MassARRAY(TM) are trademarks of SEQUENOM, Inc.
Nuvelo Safe Harbor
Statements contained in this press release which are not historical in nature, are intended to be, and are hereby identified as "forward-looking statements" for purposes of the safe harbor provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "should," "may," "estimate," "goals," and "potential," among others. Such statements are based on our management's current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results and performance could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of many factors, including, without limitation, the risk that we may not successfully integrate the VARIAGENICS business following our recent merger, uncertainties relating to drug discovery, clinical development processes and the development and commercialization of our molecular diagnostics technology; changes in relationships with strategic partners and dependence upon strategic partners for the performance of critical activities under collaborative agreements; the impact of competitive products and technological changes; uncertainties relating to patent protection and regulatory approval; and uncertainties relating to our ability to obtain substantial additional funds required for progress in drug discovery and development. These and other factors are identified and described in more detail in Nuvelo, Hyseq and VARIAGENICS filings with the SEC, including without limitation Nuvelo's annual report on Form 10-K and the related Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2002 and Nuvelo's quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2003. We disclaim any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
SEQUENOM Safe Harbor
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including statements related to SEQUENOM's potential payment of royalties from sublicensing, and SEQUENOM's ability to develop and commercialize new applications, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including the risks and uncertainties inherent in and associated with drug discovery, development and commercialization, new product and application introductions and SEQUENOM's technologies and other risks detailed from time to time in SEQUENOM's SEC reports, including SEQUENOM's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002, and its most recently filed quarterly report. These forward-looking statements are based on current information that is likely to change and speak only as of the date hereof.
Source: Nuvelo, Inc. |
