Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:PAR) has received official approval from IP Australia for a patent application covering the treatment of bone marrow pathologies with polysulfated polysaccharides under Australian application number 2021201198.
The patent will expire on August 6, 2038, and refers to "a method of improving knee function where the subject has a bone marrow lesion and osteoarthritis in a knee by administering pentosan polysulfate sodium".
A patent pending for the same treatment and indication in the US was knocked back by the US Patent and Trademark Office, but the company has continued to pursue acceptance and intends to file a response to the rejection by the end of July this year.
More patents and grants to come
“It is very exciting for the company’s strategic plans to have a patent which claims the treatment of people with osteoarthritis and bone marrow lesions with pentosan polysulphate sodium (PPS) and we expect further acceptance and grants in other territories in the coming months,” Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals chair Paul Rennie said.
“We continue to work in partnership with our patent attorneys to proactively prosecute new patents to extend our protection on the use of PPS in disease indications with unmet medical needs.”
PPS is a highly complex molecular platform technology; a highly sulphated semisynthetic xylan-based polysaccharide that structurally resembles glycosaminoglycans, which is derived from beechwood hemicellulose.
The manufacture and composition of PPS is a trade secret tightly held by the German company bene pharmaChem GmbH for more than 60 years.
Paradigm has an exclusive global supply agreement with bene, which is the only US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved manufacturer of PPS.
The two companies also share in a collaboration agreement for product-related development support, regulatory milestones and the development of PPS for new indications and second-generation molecules.