VRP.L Share News (VRP)

(Sharecast News) - Respiratory disease-focussed clinical stage biopharmaceutical company Verona Pharma announced on Tuesday that the European Patent Office had granted an additional key patent relating to its lead development candidate, 'ensifentrine'.The AIM-traded firm said the patent would provide intellectual property protection throughout Europe out to 2035 for a suspension formulation of ensifentrine (RPL554), suitable for nebulised administration.A corresponding patent had already been issued in the United States.Verona said ensifentrine was in phase 2b clinical trials for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).It explained that the inhaled therapy had both bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory activity in a single agent, and had the potential to address a major unmet need in COPD.The patent further strengthened Verona's intellectual property estate, which provided exclusivity for ensifentrine products in key markets such as the US and Europe out to 2035.Currently, the patent estate included eight issued US patents and seven European patents, which had been validated in a wide range of countries throughout Europe, as well as patents in other commercially-important jurisdictions such as China and Japan.Those patents covered a range of subject matter, including formulations, solid forms and methods of using ensifentrine for the treatment of respiratory disorders.In addition to the granted patents, more than 50 applications were pending, and if granted, could potentially extend the patent protection even further."The granting of this important patent adds a further layer of protection to ensifentrine as a novel potential treatment for COPD," said Verona Pharma chief executive officer Jan-Anders Karlsson."We remain focused on completing the final Phase 2b clinical trials with ensifentrine before advancing into Phase 3 in 2020."Karlsson said ensifentrine had been administered to more than 800 people, and had generated "strong" efficacy data and been well-tolerated."We believe this first-in-class dual PD3 and PD4 inhibitor can address a clear unmet medical need in COPD and has significant commercial potential."