GeoVax Announces Multiple Actions By Global Patent Offices Strengthening The Company's Intellectual Property Assets; Intellectual Property Assets Strengthened For Cancer Immunotherapy Program And For Marburg Virus And HIV Vaccines

Author: Benzinga Newsdesk | February 13, 2024 10:05am

Intellectual Property Assets Strengthened for Cancer Immunotherapy Program

and for Marburg Virus and HIV Vaccines

ATLANTA, GA, Feb. 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire – GeoVax Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ:GOVX), a biotechnology company developing immunotherapies and vaccines against cancers and infectious diseases, today announced multiple actions by global patent offices strengthening the Company's intellectual property assets.

• The Japanese Patent Office issued a Decision of Grant notifying GeoVax of the allowance of the Company's Patent Application No. 2022-153352 titled "Compositions and Methods for Generating an Immune Response to a Tumor Associated Antigen." The allowed claims are directed to recombinant MVA viral vectors comprising specific MUC-1 nucleic sequences used in GeoVax's MUC-1 tumor-associated antigen immunotherapy program. Pharmaceutical compositions for inducing immune responses, preventing or reducing neoplasm growth, or treating cancer are also covered by the granted claims.
• The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Patent No. 11,896,657 to GeoVax, pursuant to the Company's patent application No. 17/584,231 titled "Replication-Deficient Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) Expressing Marburg Virus Glycoprotein (GP) and Matrix Protein (VP40)." The allowed claims generally cover GeoVax's vector platform for expressing Marburg virus antigens in virus-like particles (VLPs) utilizing an MVA viral vector.
• The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Patent No. 11,897,919 pursuant to the Company's patent application No. 17/409,574 titled "Multivalent HIV Vaccine Boost Compositions and Methods of Use." The allowed claims generally cover a priming vaccination with a DNA vector encoding multiple HIV antigens in virus-like particles (VLPs), followed by a boost vaccination with GeoVax's vector platform for expressing HIV-1 antigens in VLPs utilizing an MVA viral vector.

David Dodd, GeoVax President and CEO, commented, "These patent actions add to our growing portfolio of wholly owned, co-owned, and in-licensed intellectual property, now standing at over 115 granted or pending patent applications spread over 24 patent families. Our development priorities continue to be our next-generation Covid-19 vaccine, currently in Phase 2 clinical trials, and our cancer immunotherapy program, with Gedeptin® as our lead product in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial for advanced head and neck cancer. Beyond these two programs, we continue to investigate MVA as a cancer immunotherapy platform, as it has shown interesting potential to address multiple cancer indications."

Mr. Dodd continued, "Although not currently under active development, our HIV program forms an important part of the dataset underpinning all of our MVA-based development programs. The patent protection associated with this vaccine is an important part of this technology platform. Also, our team is committed to supporting the successful advancement of vaccines against lethal hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Marburg virus, as we recognize the critically important medical and biodefense need, reflected by the inclusion of Marburg virus in the FDA Priority Review Voucher program."

Posted In: GOVX