Clinical Data Secures EU Patent for MDR1 – A Key Multi-Drug Resistance Gene

Clinical Data, Inc. has announced that the European Patent Office has granted Patent No. 1232260 to Bernried, Germany-based Epidauros Biotechnologie AG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Clinical Data, relating to the use of a genetic variant, or biomarker, of the gene MDR1 (also known as ABCB1), which encodes P-glycoprotein (PGP).

PGP is an efflux pump expressed in the gut and kidneys but also by tumor cells, and therefore modulates the response to medications by blocking their absorption into the body or into tumors. Classes of drugs transported by PGP include chemotherapeutics, immunosuppressants, and protease inhibitors.

Genetic testing of MDR1 variation has become an increasingly important part of many drug discovery and development efforts. The particular variant covered by the patent issued to Epidauros, C3435T, is the most common variant of MDR1, occurring in approximately 50% of Caucasians and in 20% and 40% of people of African and Asian descent, respectively.