Life Sciences
Life Sciences
Dunlap Codding’s Life Sciences and Pharmaceuticals Group provides the insight and practical advice required by innovative companies to compete effectively in the marketplace.
Over the past 20 years, life sciences, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical ventures set new records for research and capital investment. Just as the life sciences are the building blocks of life itself, new biotechnologies consistently push the intellectual property envelope, requiring highly specialized and focused representation. Dunlap Codding assists many of these emerging growth companies in the development of their business plans, as well as securing strategic life science patent portfolios that are used for offense as well as defense.
Our life sciences and pharmaceutical practice has grown with the evolving needs of our clients. This evolution is evident in the increased number of Ph.D. level scientists moving into the field of patent prosecution. Along with our experienced patent professionals, top caliber technical advisors having varied academic and industry backgrounds complete our Life Sciences and Pharmaceuticals Practice Group.
The multi-faceted proficiencies of the Life Sciences and Pharmaceuticals Practice Group are a reflection of their extensive legal and scientific backgrounds including several members holding Doctorate and other advanced degrees in Chemistry, Botany, Plant Physiology, Population, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Members of the Life Sciences and Pharmaceuticals Practice Group also serve as adjunct faculty members at several universities including the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and Oklahoma City University School of Law.
Our clients benefit from the Group’s professionalism, efficiency, and devotion to their individual intellectual property needs. We provide advice and counseling to medical and biotechnology companies including high-tech startups, university laboratories, research institutions, and established biotechnology pioneers.
We provide the personal attention that results in successful patent portfolios. Dunlap Codding’s expertise extends into all areas of biotechnology including glycobiology, biochemistry, immunology, microbiology, virology, genetics, developmental biology, cell biology, molecular biology, pharmaceutical compositions, molecular diagnostics and techniques, and medical devices and equipment.
A Strategic Partnering Example—Medical Devices/Biotechnology
For a client with a medical device designed to maintain blood flow, we performed a complete state of the art search, analyzing more than 300 references. The current “map” contains more than 1,000 references—patent, technical, and literature.
- We brainstormed with engineering, legal, business and marketing teams to develop a hierarchy of chokepoints and “white space.”
- We facilitated innovation strategy meetings and currently maintain an online and proprietary database including visualization tools focused on the information collected and analyzed.
- We helped the client develop a patent strategy with a specific goal of market entry. Market entry was achieved within 18 months of project initiation.
Additional highlights of Dunlap Codding’s Life Sciences and Pharmaceuticals Practice Group include:
University of Oklahoma
Funding, organizing, and implementing the University of Oklahoma’s Office of Technology Development. In support of OU’s technology commercialization efforts, Dunlap Codding has donated more than three million dollars in fees and services to OU’s expanding technology transfer efforts.
Cutting Edge Biotechnology
Securing intellectual property protection for the first process for producing individual endogenously loaded soluble HLA molecules and on the first recombinant methods for producing hyaluronic acid, chondroitin, and heparin. These patent portfolios have led to the creation of five biotechnology companies in several Oklahoma and Texas metroplexes.
“…The thing I like most about Dunlap Codding was that they looked at [our situation] from a strategic point of view of thinking outside-the-box.”
Dr. Gary Lobel, Chief Patent Counsel, Nestlé Nutrition
Electrophysiology
We were instrumental in securing broad platform intellectual property protection for preconditioning and treatment of an intrinsic cardiac nervous system using an implantable electrical stimulus.
Immunology
We secured pioneering intellectual property protection for the first process for producing individual endogenously loaded soluble major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules. Our expertise in this area also extends to methods and processes for producing T Cell Receptor-mimics (TCRm) and the use of such mimics for the creation of peptides and antibodies for use in vaccines as well as assaying the potency of vaccines. We are pleased to have represented more than 12 U.S. and/or international companies in the field of immunology and we prosecute more than 100 patent applications worldwide per year on immunology-linked inventions.
We also have specific expertise in the areas of immune modulation, including the induction of targeted immune responses and the induction of specific immune tolerance, and antibody removal for transplantation technologies.
Oncology
We treat the field of oncology with a multi-disciplinary approach. Most biochemical inventions either have or hope to have some impact on the field of oncology. As such, our approach is to create a team of professionals with diverse backgrounds who can effectively and proactively protect a client’s oncology innovations. For example, we prosecuted and obtained the patent portfolio covering the fire recombinant methods for producing hyaluronic acid, chondroitin, and heparin. These glycosaminoglycans show excellent promise for oncological applications and we have extended the portfolio to cover their use as therapeutic and diagnostic tools. Additionally, many of our immunology clients perform research in the field of oncologic therapeutics—including the use of antibodies, cytolytic delivery of peptides, or conjugates for the targeting and treatment of specific forms of cancer, as well as other methods of upregulating the immune system to recognize cancerous cells as foreign. We are also experiences in diagnostic oncologic technologies, including the use of biomarkers and other diagnostic platforms for identification, progression, metastasis and prognosis.
Leveraging Patent Portfolios
Our professionals routinely assist legacy and start-up companies in the acquisition and exploitation of patent portfolios of cutting edge research in the areas of pharmaceuticals, drug formulation, medical technology, drug screening, inflammation inhibitors, regulation of skin pigmentation, testing for environmental pollution, novel treatments of septic shock, and water and food quality testing. We have an exceptional track record in identifying and protecting inventions involving:
- Pain regulation
- Tissue grafting
- Cloning/gene expression/protein production, isolation and characterization
- Cell surface expressional
- Medical/surgical anesthetic devices
- Biocidal formulations and coatings
- Toxicity screening
- Enzymatic activity assays
- Drug delivery systems
Developing Portfolio Strategy
Dunlap Codding’s Life Sciences and Pharmaceutical Group believes that a pragmatic and strategic approach is necessary to ensure that every portfolio is strong on defense as well as on offense. Whether it is a core, a platform, a fence-picket or a poker-chip technology, Dunlap Codding has the depth of experience and tools necessary to help our clients determine whether it is an asset or simply just an expense.
