HAYWARD, Calif., Sept. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Anthera
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:
ANTH), a biopharmaceutical company developing drugs to treat
serious diseases associated with inflammation, today announced that
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has given the Company a Notice
of Allowance for U.S. Patent Application No. 12/114,710 entitled
“Treatment of cardiovascular disease and dyslipidemia using
secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2) inhibitors and sPLA2 inhibitor
combination therapies.” The patent grants Anthera exclusive rights
to compositions containing varespladib and any statins such as
Lipitor® (atorvastatin calcium) or Crestor®
(rosuvastatin calcium). Statin therapies are currently utilized to
manage high cholesterol levels in patients with various
cardiovascular diseases including Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS). As
disclosed in the patent application, the combination of varespladib
with a statin demonstrated unexpected synergy for lowering LDL
levels and reducing atherosclerotic plaque formation. The U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office further notified the Company that
following issuance, the patent will receive a Patent Term
Adjustment of 353 days.
“This patent allowance provides another cornerstone to our
product life cycle planning for varespladib. In our current Phase 3
VISTA-16 clinical study, we are evaluating the potential of
varespladib methyl in combination with Lipitor to reduce the risk
of future heart attacks in high-risk patients with Acute Coronary
Syndrome,” said Paul F. Truex, Anthera’s President and Chief
Executive Officer. “The additional exclusivity period of this new
patent will provide Anthera added flexibility to maximize and
expand future development options for varespladib in combination
with statins – the largest class of marketed cardiovascular
therapeutics.”
About Varespladib and sPLA2
Varespladi
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