Third Wave Technologies issued "Invasive Cleavage of Nucleic Acids" patent

Third Wave Technologies has announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued U.S. Patent No. 7,011,944, entitled "Invasive Cleavage of Nucleic Acids," to the company.

The patent issued today to Third Wave, together with those issued to the company during 2005 (U.S. Patent Nos. 6,913,881; 6,875,572 and 6,872,816), significantly expand the value of the company's intellectual property estate in the field of DNA and RNA detection and analysis. These patents broadly protect Third Wave's new Invader(R) Plus(TM) chemistry. Invader(R) Plus(TM) combines the Invader(R) chemistry with basic polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, a molecular chemistry that finds even a minute amount of DNA or RNA and makes exponential copies of it, to provide the best of both technologies. The patents also provide additional protections to Third Wave's core Invader(R) method, including potential kit configurations and assay methodologies.

Third Wave also announced that the Japan Patent Office has issued patent no. 3,665,648 to the company. This patent covers the core Invader(R) chemistry for DNA and RNA detection and significantly increases the value of Third Wave's global intellectual property position by reinforcing strong patent protection in one of the company's key markets. The Japanese patent is the equivalent of the two U.S. patents owned by Third Wave that a federal jury last fall found Stratagene Corp. had infringed.

"These important, new patents are a demonstration of the commitment Third Wave has made to protecting the company's most valuable asset -- our core Invader chemistries," said Kevin Conroy, president and chief executive of Third Wave. "The patent issued today by the Patent and Trademark Office provides broad protection to our exciting, new Invader Plus chemistry, which expands our product capabilities and market opportunities."