USPTO grants Charpentier-founded company first CRISPR patent

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted ERS Genomics its first US patent covering the use of CRISPR/Cas9 technology for gene editing.

The patent was granted to ERS co-founder Emmanuelle Charpentier, together with the University of California (UC), Berkeley and the University of Vienna, yesterday, June 19.

Genomics company ERS was formed to provide wide access to Charpentier’s CRISPR IP by providing licences in multiple fields of use.

Its US patent covers the use of an “optimised guide RNA format in all environments including human cells”.

Eric Rhodes, CEO of ERS, said: “We are very pleased to finally see the first of what we expect to be many more US patents issued from the seminal discoveries of Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna and their research teams.”

Rhodes added: “Despite having filed more than six months later than Charpentier and Doudna, the Broad Institute had their patents issued early because they paid special fees to have their patent review expedited. This has led to further confusion among those groups looking to secure appropriate licence to use the technology.”

According to ERS, the USPTO deemed the claims in this patent unrelated to the ongoing interference appeal between UC Berkeley, the University of Vienna and Charpentier on side, and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT on the other.

In December 2016, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) said the Broad Institute’s patents—which are all limited to CRISPR/Cas9 systems in a eukaryotic environment—do not interfere with patent claims filed by UC Berkeley and the University of Vienna.

UC Berkeley appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in April last year.

In response, the Broad Institute adopted three arguments: that the PTAB’s ruling was supported by substantial factual evidence, that it was fully consistent with the law, and that it considered the evidence presented in the case.

In Europe, the European Patent Office granted Charpentier her first European patent in May 2017 (EP2800811). This was followed by a second patent in March this year.

ERS said the second European patent has “very broad claims” covering the use of CRISPR technology for gene regulation in cellular and non-cellular settings including in bacteria, plants and animals.

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