NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Illumina is suing Swiss non-invasive prenatal testing firm Genoma for patent infringement.
On behalf of its fully-owned, NIPT-focused subsidiary Verinata Health, Illumina has filed suit against Genoma in Switzerland's Federal Patent Court. In a statement, Illumina said it is seeking all available remedies including damages and injunctive relief.
Illumina asserts that Genoma is infringing upon four European patents covering the use of cell-free fetal DNA for NIPT. Genoma's Tranquillty NIPT service is based on Premaitha Health's Iona Test, using next-generation sequencing to analyze cell-free DNA from maternal blood.
Since the beginning of 2015, Illumina has filed numerous lawsuits against companies in Europe alleging patent infringement. It has sued both Premaitha and Roche subsidiary Ariosa Diagnostics, which offers the Harmony NIPT test, along with several companies that offer NIPT services based on either the Iona test or the Harmony test.
And Illumina may not be finished filing such lawsuits. "We will continue to monitor activities in the NIPT field and file suits where appropriate to protect our substantial investments in this technology covered by our intellectual property," Illumina Senior VP and General Counsel Charles Dadswell said in a statement.