OTHER NEWS - Oct. 29, 1991

Xoma Patent Upheld: Xoma Corp., a Berkeley biotechnology company, said a U.S. District Court in San Francisco upheld the validity of its patent covering the use of a genetically engineered treatment for septic shock syndrome, a bacterial infection that kills about 70,000 people in the United States annually. In April, 1990, after being granted a U.S. patent for the treatment, Xoma sued Centocor, a rival, alleging that the Malvern, Pa., company was copying its invention. Both companies’ septic shock treatments are under review by the FDA. Last month, an FDA advisory panel recommended approval of Centocor’s product.