PE Biosytems filed a law suit alleging that Affymetrix’s products infringe on five PE patented inventions.
In the lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in Delaware, PE alleged that Affymetrix “has long been aware of the patents” but nevertheless continued to make and sell its GeneChip Probe Array.
According to court papers, the alleged infringement concerns patents used to synthesize oligonucleotides and to speed up production of DNA.
In response, Vern Norviel, general counsel of Affymetrix said: “Affymetrix purchases its reagents from licensed vendors, therefore, we believe we have meritorious defenses to the claims in this lawsuit.”
PE of Norwalk, Conn., asked the court to block Affymetrix from further alleged infringement and to award unspecified damages.
Based in Santa Clara, Calif., Affymetrix’s gene chip technology allow researchers to analyze and manage genetic information. Glaxo Wellcome owns 22 percent of Affymetrix.