Medical and Dental Device Patenting Blog : Medical and Dental Patent Lawyer & Attorrney : John Rizvi : Gold & Rizvi Law Firm : Florida, Serving Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, Florida

       Merck & Co, Inc., in collaboration with Arena Pharmaceuticals, is taking a patent pending drug into Phase One of a clinical trial (PharmaLive, January 25, 2008). Merck's second generation niacin receptor agonist is a combatant to artherosclerosis.

        Will the patented drug enter the market?

        According to Arena Pharmaceuticals' President and CEO Jack Lief, so far, so good. This particular trial is part of a larger collaboration between Merck and Arena to discover patented ways to treat artherosclerosis and other disorders. While a recent investigation of MK-0354 broke down in the preclinical trial phase, Lief remains optimistic about the progress they've made with this new drug.
      
       Artherosclerosis accounts for the greatest number of cholesterol-related deaths. So, it makes sense that Merck wants to contribute with drugs aimed at its demise. As a Florida patent attorney, I see pharmaceutical companies racing to market with ever new and innovative solutions to patient ills.

        A great deal of money is spent on patenting drugs that ultimately fail before reaching the market. You might wonder if its worth it. Ask the pharmaceutical companies, however, and the answer is a resounding and emphatic "Yes!" Financial market analysts agree. Patented brand name drugs net huge returns.

        And, as a Florida Patent Attorney who watches the business and financial worlds closely, I can attest to the fact that patents are the driving force behind profits in each and every category.

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       Applied DNA Sciences has filed multiple patent applications for technologies that serve to protect the authenticity of patented branded products (Medical Patent News, January 23, 2008). The technology works within hand-held scanners, which optically read their "SigNature DNA," a coding embedded by Applied DNA Sciences.

    As a U.S. Registered Florida Patent Attorney, I find this concept interesting. The idea behind it is preserving the authenticity of our patented products. And, authenticity is a key element in medical patents and, for that matter, any kind of patent. In the medical field, for one, we know that drug patents are among the most highly prized and valuable patents you can hold.

    Think of authenticity as a broader platform in the medical community. What brands of supplies, pharmaceuticals, and equipment do you trust most? Which feel, as the Coke slogan goes, like "the real thing"? No doubt others in the medical field feel strongly about particular (patented) brands.

    Patients, too, find comfort in brands they know and trust. Are you in the process of inventing something for use by medical staff? By patients? How are you imbuing authenticity within your product's concept? When an idea is innovative enough, being first is itself the strongest voice of authenticity.

    In this vein, you can see why patenting is so important. So, I'm interested in Applied DNA Sciences' hopefully soon-to-be-patented authenticator. And, interested in seeing of others are as interested in authenticity as I am.

    If you're interested in authenticating your medical invention with a patent, contact me at 866-433-2288 or JohnRizvi@IdeaAttorneys.com.

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       Dr. Tom Kosten, a professor of psychiatry at the Baylor College of Medicine, and his wife, neuroscientist and psychologist Dr. Therese Kosten are working on a medication to aid people in stopping cocaine addiction, according to a recent Newsweek article. The vaccine is designed to help the immune system identify cocaine when it's in the system and to "bind to the cocaine and prevent it from reaching the brain."

       This is an innovative approach that marks the first time a medication might successfully be used to combat cocaine addiction. Since the addictive highs associated with cocaine occur when the drug reaches a person's brain, "hijacking" the drug before it reaches that point is particularly advantageous. The drug is currently in clinical trials, and Kosten has requested a full "multi-institutional trial" by the Food and Drug Administration to start this spring ('08). Holding a patent for this type of medication will likely be lucrative; David Gorelick, senior investigator at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, calls "addiction vaccines" a "promising advance."

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