QRxPharma granted US patent for MoxDuo

QRxPharma (ASX:QRX) has ensured the exclusivity of the formulation of lead product MoxDuo through to 2023.

The company has been awarded a US patent covering a method of treating pain by administrating the dual-opioid formulation MoxDuo.

The patent covers both MoxDuo IR (immediate release) for the treatment of acute pain, and MoxDuo CR (controlled release) for chronic pain.

This new patent does not expire until 2023, and ensures the continued patent protection of the MoxDuo product range. The initial US patent for the products, which covers the combination of morphine and oxycodone as used in MoxDuo, expires in 2016.

QRxPharma CEO Dr John Holaday said the issue of the patent by the US Patent and Trademark office “provides long term market exclusivity for QRxPharma’s MoxDuo opioid products.”

Another patent granted in 2011, covering a dosing algorithm for converting patients from intravenous oral opioid administration to MoxDuo IR, does not expire until 2029.

QRxPharma is close to gaining FDA approval for MoxDuo IR, and plans to launch the product in the third quarter.

At the end of last year, the company arranged a commercialisation partnership for the product with Actavis in preparation for the planned launch.

In April, the company also successfully completed phase 1 trials of MoxDuo CR in healthy volunteers.