Astra in court win over patent

Drugs giant AstraZeneca has won the latest round in a US court battle over the patent for its blockbuster schizophrenia drug Seroquel.

The New Jersey District Court granted summary judgment in its favour in the case against Israeli drugmaker Teva, which said it would appeal against the ruling.

Astra shares jumped 125p, or 6%, to 2255p on the news.

The company is fending off the threat of generic competition for Seroquel, which had worldwide sales of $4 billion (£2 billion) last year. Astra sued Teva and Sandoz, the generics unit of Novartis, alleging infringement of its patent after both filed new drug applications seeking Food and Drug Administration approval to make cheaper versions of Seroquel in the US before its patent expires in 2011.

Teva and Sandoz had conceded infringement and the validity of AstraZeneca's patent, but Astra was facing a trial in August over whether the pair were guilty of inequitable conduct.