The US Patent Office has issued notices of intent to Issue Ex Parte Reexamination Certificates for US patents which claim preparations of, respectively, primate and human embryonic stem cells and methods for their isolation. The decisions of the Patent Office on these two patents are final and cannot be appealed.
During the proceedings, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), an organization to which the patents are assigned, made minor amendments to certain claims to improve clarity and consistency and added three new claims to each patent.
David Earp, Geron’s chief patent counsel and senior vice president of business development, said: “We are pleased that the Patent Office has reconfirmed the validity of all three of the patents. The reexamination proceedings were detailed and comprehensive, and the positive outcomes have strengthened the patents.”