The U.S. District Court for New Jersey upheld patents that protect Otezla (apremilast), Amgen Inc.’s psoriasis treatment.
The Thousand Oaks pharma giant bought marketing right for Otezla two years ago for $13.4 billion. The patent infringement lawsuit against Sandoz Inc. and Zydus Pharmaceuticals Inc. prevents the two companies from making, using, selling, offering to sell or importing their versions of Otezla until February 2028, when the patent expires.
Sandoz and Zydus were found to have infringed on Amgen’s patents. The court upheld four patents, three against each of the two companies.
Otezla is approved in the U.S. for the treatment of adult patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis who are also candidates for photo or systemic therapy. It is also approved for adult patients with active psoriatic arthritis and adult patients with oral ulcers related to Behçet’s Disease.
The court ruled against Amgen on some claims concerning the dosing schedule methods for Otelza.
Shares of Amgen closed up 25 cents, or a fraction of a percent, to $215.36 on the Nasdaq Tuesday, a day when the market also closed up a fraction of a percent.