This patent, when issued, would complement an issued US patent that covers zonisamide to promote weight-loss in combination with bupropion. Both patents would expire in 2023.
Gary Tomlinson, Orexigen’s president and CEO, said: “We believe this strengthens our intellectual property rights with Emphatic (zonisamide sustained release (SR) paired with bupropion SR), and may block attempts to copy our approach to treating obesity with any zonisamide-based compounds.”