Precision BioSciences Announces Allowance of Five Additional U.S. Patent Applications Related to Engineered Meganucleases

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Precision BioSciences, Inc., a leader in the field of genome engineering, today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued Notices of Allowance for five U.S. Patent Applications: 12/879,428, 13/246,263, 13/245,650, 13/246,355 and 13/246,376 (“the Applications”). The allowed claims relate to a broad set of genome engineering methods and materials. These methods constitute multiple aspects of Precision's genome engineering technology known as the Directed Nuclease Editor or DNE.

The allowance of the claims of the Applications follow Precision's recently allowed claims from U.S. Patent Applications 13/246,270, 13/246,346, 13/246,380, and European Patent Application 10 191 888 and further augments Precision's ability to protect its proprietary DNE technology, features of which are already covered under claims of Precision's U.S. Patent Nos. 8,021,867, 8,119,361 and 8,119,381 (“the Patents”). Precision previously announced that it has asserted the Patents against Cellectis SA in three patent infringement lawsuits pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

“We are thrilled that twelve of our patent applications in the U.S. and Europe have now been allowed,” stated Jeff Smith, Precision BioSciences' Chief Science Officer. “It is deeply satisfying that our innovative contributions to the field of genome engineering will be so well protected upon issuance of these patents.”

About Precision BioSciences

Precision BioSciences' mission is to continually provide, improve, and enable the world's most powerful genome engineering technology. Precision's proprietary Directed Nuclease Editor^TM (DNE) technology enables the production of genome editing enzymes that can insert, remove, modify, and regulate essentially any gene in mammalian or plant cells.

Precision BioSciences' vision is to be the conduit through which the world's greatest genome engineering challenges are solved. Precision has successfully utilized its DNE technology to create innovative products in partnerships with many of the world's largest biopharmaceutical, agbiotech, and animal research firms. Internally, Precision is developing applications of DNE in biological production and human therapeutics. For additional information, please visit www.precisionbiosciences.com.