Editas fires back in CRISPR patent battle
Pharmaceutical research company Editas Medicines has achieved an exclusive patent for its Cpf1 protein that improves researchers' ability to edit genes and fight disease. The news comes just days after biotech rival CRISPR Therapeutics achieved IP for its Cas9 gene editing tool. However, where Cas9 takes two molecules to replace a DNA sequence, Cpf1 requires just one to make a cut, making it a more versatile protein. Editas' new license could give the research organisation an advantage in protecting its clinical work from rivals Intellia and CRISPR Therapeutics.
Just days af­ter biotech ri­vals formed an IP al­liance around CRISPR/Cas9 gene edit­ing tech, Ed­i­tas Med­i­cines $ED­IT has fired back in their patent war by bag­ging an ex­clu­sive li­cense to what is be­ing billed as an up­grade to im­prove re­searchers’ abil­i­ty to ed­it genes and fight dis­ease.

Like its foun­da­tion IP, this new tech, which sub­sti­tutes a new DNA edit­ing “tool” called Cpf1 in place of Cas9, comes from Feng Zhang at MIT. Cam­bridge, MA-based Ed­i­tas gained their new Cpf1 tech — along with new IP on Cas9 — from the Broad In­sti­tute of MIT and Har­vard, Har­vard Uni­ver­si­ty, MIT, Wa­genin­gen Uni­ver­si­ty, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Iowa, and the Uni­ver­si­ty of Tokyo.