AstraZeneca's patent on asthma drug invalidated by U.S. court

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge ruled late on Friday that AstraZeneca PLC's patent on its Pulmicort Repsules treatment for asthma was invalid, opening up the market to a second, cheaper generic version.

Actavis Plc said that the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey ruling prompted it to release a generic version of the lung drug. Another generic version of Pulmicort Respules from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, under a previous agreement with AstraZeneca, has been on the market for some time.

Total branded and generic sales of Pulmicort over the twelve months ended June 30, 2014 were approximately $1.1 billion, according to Actavis.

Paul Hudson, president of AstraZeneca's U.S. operations, said that the company strongly disagreed with the court's decision and that it is considering legal options, including an appeal.

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(http://news.yahoo.com/astrazenecas-patent-asthma-drug-invalidated-u-court-004612781--finance.html;_ylt=AwrSyCM8yAdVsGkAESbQtDMD)

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