BETHESDA, Md., Nov. 12, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:SCMP), a global biopharmaceutical company, today announced that Sucampo, R-Tech Ueno, Ltd., Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda), and certain affiliates of Takeda have filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey against Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Ltd. and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Inc. (collectively, Dr. Reddy’s) related to an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) that Dr. Reddy’s filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market, sell and use a generic version of the 8 mcg and 24 mcg AMITIZA® (lubiprostone) soft gelatin capsule products. The lawsuit claims infringement of 7 patents that are listed in the FDA’s Orange Book, with the latest expiring in 2027.
Sucampo commenced the lawsuit within 45 days from the receipt of a Notice letter sent by Dr. Reddy’s, dated October 1, 2014, regarding its filing of its ANDA. Under the Hatch-Waxman Act, as a result of the patent infringement lawsuit, final FDA approval of Dr. Reddy’s ANDA will be stayed up to 30 months from the date of receipt of the Notice letter.
“Protecting AMITIZA’s intellectual property is of paramount importance to Sucampo,” said Peter Greenleaf, Chief Executive Officer of Sucampo. “We believe that the AMITIZA patents, granted by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, are valid, enforceable, and infringed by Dr. Reddy’s proposed lubiprostone products, and we will vigorously defend them.”
About Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is focused on the development and commercialization of medicines that meet major unmet medical needs of patients worldwide. Sucampo has two marketed products – AMITIZA® and RESCULA® – and a pipeline of drug candidates in clinical development. A global company, Sucampo is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and has operations in Japan, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.sucampo.com.
The Sucampo logo is the registered trademark and the tagline, The Science of Innovation, is a registered/pending trademark of Sucampo AG. AMITIZA is a registered trademark of Sucampo AG. RESCULA is a registered trademark of R-Tech Ueno, Ltd, and has been licensed to Sucampo AG.
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Sucampo Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in the statements. The forward-looking statements may include statements regarding product development, product potential, future financial and operating results, and other statements that are not historical facts. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation; Sucampo’s ability to accurately predict future market conditions; dependence on the effectiveness of Sucampo’s patents and other protections for innovative products; the risk of new and changing regulation and health policies in the U.S. and internationally and the exposure to litigation and/or regulatory actions. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual results may differ materially from those projected. Sucampo undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements in this presentation should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that affect Sucampo’s business, particularly those mentioned in the risk factors and cautionary statements in Sucampo’s most recent Form 8-K and 10-K, which Sucampo incorporates by reference.
CONTACT: Silvia Taylor Senior Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 1-240-223-3718 staylor@sucampo.com
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