ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, April 12, 1996 TAG: 9604120070
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
Barr challenges Lilly's patents on Prozac
Barr Laboratories Inc., a maker of generic drugs with plans to operate a $29 million manufacturing and distribution center in Bedford County, said Thursday it will challenge patents on Prozac, an anti-depressant that last year yielded about $2 billion in sales for its maker, Eli Lilly & Co. Indianapolis-based Lilly filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Barr this week.
"Millions of consumers are spending approximately $6 million a day for this medication," said Barr Chairman Bruce Downey. "We believe the patents protecting Prozac from competition are invalid."
Barr, based in Pomona, N.Y., has successfully challenged the patent on a breast cancer treatment, lost its challenge of a cheaper version of AZT treatment for AIDS and this fall will challenge before the Food and Drug Administration patents held by Bayer AG for its Cipro anti-bacterial agent.
Lilly's 20-year U.S. patent on Prozac's chemical ingredient, fluoxetine, is not due to expire until Feb. 2, 2001, and a second patent covering the way the drug acts in the body is valid until Dec. 2, 2003, said company spokesman Ed West.
The legal battle is likely to take two to three years, but it could give Barr a head start on other generic manufacturers.
- Staff and wire report
Earthgrains plant to change hands
The Earthgrains Co. of St. Louis will transfer ownership of its baked-goods plant in Roanoke to Interstate Bakeries Corp. of Kansas City, Mo., within two months, but there are no plans to cut jobs or change operations, Earthgrains said Thursday.
The Roanoke plant, which employs 175, serves central Virginia and parts of West Virginia and North Carolina. Earthgrains, formerly The Rainbo Baking Co., will do Interstate's baking, marketing and distribution in the Dallas area, Earthgrains spokesman Matt Hall said.
A Dallas Interstate facility will close, but Earthgrains plans to hire 80 employees in that area.. Earthgrains said the baking industry is undergoing a consolidation to reduce costs.
- Staff report
High technology is conference topic
The Women Engineers Board of the Southeastern University and College Coalition for Engineering Education is sponsoring a conference Saturday at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center on the advanced technologies used by industries and universities. Among the topics will be use of the Internet's World Wide Web to find jobs and employees.
The keynote address at 9:15 a.m. by Jeff Sluss, president of Blue Ridge Consulting of Salem, will discuss "Success in the Engineering Environment for the '90s and Beyond."
For more information and to register, call (540)231-5182.
- Staff report
LENGTH: Medium: 59 linesby CNB