IP News
Home > IP News
US group seeks to block Gilead drug patent in India
New Delhi (AFP) - A US-based patient rights group said Saturday it has sought to block a bid by California-based Gilead Sciences to obtain an Indian patent for a potentially blockbuster drug to treat hepatitis C.
New York's Initiative for Medicines, Access & Knowledge (I-MAK), which works to ensure affordable access to drugs, said it opposed the patent for the drug sofosbuvir to treat the liver-destroying disease on the grounds that it is "old science".
Patent law in India, known as the "pharmacy to the world" for its vast generic drug industry that turns out cheaper copycat versions of life-saving branded medicines, is tougher than in many other countries.
The strict regime has led to a string of expensive intellectual property setbacks for Western drugmakers such as Roche and Pfizer in the quickly growing Indian pharmaceutical market.
To continue reading, click here.
(These latest Intellectual Property (IP) news and events presented here, are prepared and compiled by us, the World Patent & Trademark Law Office (WPTO),for your reference and information)