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PTAB rejects Bass' challenge to Revlimid, Pomalyst

November 17, 2015 2:33 AM UTC

The Patent Trial and Appeals Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied an inter partes review (IPR) petition from Kyle Bass' Coalition for Affordable Drugs challenging a patent covering thalidomide analogs Revlimid lenalidomide and Pomalyst pomalidomide from Celgene Corp. (NASDAQ:CELG).

Bass challenged U.S. Patent No. 5,635,517, which covered methods of reducing tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha in mammals by administering certain thalidomide analogs. PTAB found that based on the chemical structures and activities disclosed in prior art, it was not obvious to someone of ordinary skill that specific thalidomide analogs would be effective in reducing TNF alpha levels. ...