Another patent blow for J&J leaves Remicade open to US competition

A US appeals court has upheld a ruling invalidating a key Remicade (infliximab) patent, adding to Johnson & Johnson’s (NYSE: JNJ)  woes after declining sales of the therapy marred an otherwise positive results statement yesterday.

That statement revealed that sales of the blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis drug fell by nearly a tenth to around $1.5 billion in the last quarter, lower than experts had predicted.

Now, the US Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has confirmed a lower court’s ruling that a J&J patent for Remicade’s active ingredient was not valid, as its concepts were covered in another of the firm’s patents.