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6d ago

Federal Court Orders Reconsideration of CRISPR Patent Priority Decision

The U.S. Court of Appeals vacates a 2022 ruling favoring the Broad Institute, instructing the PTAB to reevaluate evidence under proper legal standards.

A researcher performs a CRISPR/Cas9 process in Germany in 2019.
Biochemist Jennifer Doudna, left, and French scientist Emmanuelle Charpentier are honored at the Nobel Prize ceremony in 2022.
Image
Illustration of CRISPR-Cas9 editing DNA.

Overview

  • The Federal Circuit vacated the PTAB's 2022 decision granting the Broad Institute priority over CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in eukaryotic cells.
  • The court found that the PTAB applied incorrect legal standards and failed to adequately consider evidence presented by UC Berkeley and its collaborators.
  • Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, who shared the 2020 Nobel Prize for CRISPR, now have another chance to establish their claim to the patents.
  • The dispute centers on whether the Broad's application of CRISPR to eukaryotic cells constitutes a distinct invention from Doudna and Charpentier's earlier work.
  • Despite the ongoing legal battle, CRISPR-based therapies, including treatments for sickle cell disease, have received FDA and UK regulatory approvals.