Kite files IPR against MSKCC

Kite Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:KITE) filed an inter partes review (IPR) petition with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office challenging a patent from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) covering chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) and their method of use as cancer immunotherapy.

A paper published in the Feb. 19, 2014 issue of Science Translational Medicine co-authored by two co-holders of the patent and co-founders of Juno Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:JUNO) said that Juno licensed the patent in November 2013. Juno did not respond to inquiries. ...