Judge hammers CellPro

CellPro Inc. came two steps closer last week to losing the market for its Ceprate SC Stem Cell Concentration System, as an FDA advisory panel recommended approval of rival Baxter Healthcare Corp.'s Isolex 300 Magnetic Cell Separator System, and a federal court judge granted an injunction against sales of Ceprate once Isolex is approved.

In March, a jury found that CPRO infringed two patents (the "Civin" patents, Nos. 4,714,680 and 4,965,204) covering CD34 monoclonal antibodies and purified stem cells and awarded the plaintiffs $2.3 million in damages (see BioCentury March 10 and March 17)...