michael-vi
Michael Vi / Shutterstock.com
24 December 2020Americas

Ravgen and Myriad in patent dispute over DNA testing tech

Biotechnology company  Ravgen has accused  Myriad Genetics and  Myriad Women’s Health of infringing two patents covering non-invasive DNA testing technology.

Delaware-based Ravgen filed the complaint against the Utah-based molecular diagnostic firm and its genetic screening arm at the US District Court for the District of Delaware on Monday, December 21.

Ravgen has invested millions of dollars in developing novel methods to detect cell-free DNA to replace conventional invasive procedures. The cell-free DNA technology has applications in prenatal testing, as well as other forms of genetic testing.

The biotech company owns US patent numbers 7,727,720 and 7,332,277, which are “directed to unconventional, non-routine techniques for preparing and analysing extracellular circulatory DNA, including for the detection of genetic disorders,” the complaint said.

The ‘720 patent, ‘Methods For Detection of Genetic Disorders’, was issued in 2010 and covers novel methods for detecting a free nucleic acid in a sample.

The ‘277 patent, which has the same name as the ‘270 patent, is directed to novel methods used in the detection of genetic disorders. It was issued in 2008.

The inventions covered by the patents were developed by the company’s founder, Ravinder Dhallen, and Ravgen is the exclusive assignee of the patents.

In 2018, Myriad acquired Counsyl, a company which had been offering commercial non-invasive prenatal tests for detecting fatal chromosomal abnormalities since 2014. The prenatal test continued to be offered under the name ‘Prequel Prenatal Screen’ following Myriad’s acquisition.

When processing the tests, Myriad isolates cell-free DNA from a sample of maternal blood before analysing the isolated foetal DNA to detect any chromosomal abnormalities.

According to Ravgen, Myriad is aware of the asserted patents and the inventions that they cover, given that they have been “widely acclaimed as breakthroughs in genetic testing”. However, by performing the Prequel Prenatal Screens, Myriad is allegedly practising the claimed inventions of the asserted patents.

The biotech company claimed that Myriad has wilfully infringed the patents to gain the benefits of the innovations, without paying Ravgen for their use. Myriad has allegedly generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from the infringement.

Ravgen is seeking damages to compensate for Myriad’s past infringement, and for any continuing or future infringement. The biotech company also asked the court for a determination that Myriad wilfully infringed the two asserted patents, and that any damages awarded be enhanced as a result of that wilfulness.

Finally, Ravgen asked that it be awarded a permanent injunction or, alternatively, a compulsory ongoing licensing fee.

Myriad is not the only company that Ravgen has accused of infringing the ‘720 and ‘277 patents. Earlier this month Ravgen  filed a lawsuit against Illumina and Roche, accusing them of infringing the two patents through the use of their respective genetic testing technologies.

Did you enjoy reading this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories sent like this straight to your inbox.


More on this story

Americas
19 March 2020   The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled that two Illumina DNA detection patents are valid, in a reversal of a California district court.
Americas
7 December 2020   Pharmaceutical companies Illumina and Roche have been sued for allegedly infringing two patents covering the technology for non-invasive DNA testing by Maryland genetic testing company Ravgen.

More on this story

Americas
19 March 2020   The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled that two Illumina DNA detection patents are valid, in a reversal of a California district court.
Americas
7 December 2020   Pharmaceutical companies Illumina and Roche have been sued for allegedly infringing two patents covering the technology for non-invasive DNA testing by Maryland genetic testing company Ravgen.