Poolbeg Pharma gets go-ahead for Japanese patent of ‘blockbuster’ influenza treatment

Dublin-based infectious disease specialist Poolbeg Pharma has received a green light from Japan’s patent office, relating to a patent application for the company’s “potential blockbuster treatment” for severe influenza.

The Japanese Patent Office has issued a notice of allowance for Poolbeg’s Immunomodulator I patent application, and it is expected that a granting of the application will follow upon completion of formalities.

The Japanese notice of allowance relates to a class of p38 MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) inhibitors to treat influenza, which includes Poolbeg’s POLB 001 treatment.

Poolbeg already has a worldwide licence for POLB 001 for all uses in humans, and said it is developing a “strong IP portfolio with patents in place”.

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This includes patents for Immunomodulator I, as well as Immunomodulator II which uses p38 MAPK inhibitors in combination with antivirals to treat severe influenza and hypercytokinaemia (a ‘cytokine storm’ reaction which can be caused by respiratory infections such as influenza, and which results in inflammation).

The company has also filed patent applications to expand its IP around POLB 001 and the use of p38 MAP kinase inhibitors in new disease areas, such as oncology.

Jeremy Skillington, chief executive officer of Poolbeg, said that the Japanese patent milestone “is a testament to the uniqueness of p38 MAPK inhibition as a potential blockbuster treatment for severe influenza”.

“We are committed to continuing to strengthen the intellectual property protection of our portfolio of assets into new jurisdictions to increase their overall value to potential partners,” he said.