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Drug company Roche is suing rival firm Teva Pharmaceuticals over a generic version of its osteoporosis treatment Boniva® (ibandronate sodium), it has emerged.
Roche has filed a complaint with a New Jersey district court to stop Teva selling the generic form of the drug in the USA, said Roche spokeswoman Martina Rupp.
Roche, which is based in Switzerland, holds various Boniva patents which are due to expire between 2012 and 2023.
The firm claims Boniva is the only osteoporosis treatment clinically proven to not only maintain bone density, but to actually build healthy bones with just one tablet a month.
Sales of Boniva for the first six months of the year totalled £154m.
Israeli-based Teva is also facing court action in another dispute over generic drugs.
Earlier this week, Novartis said a US court had stopped Teva from selling a generic version of its Famvir® (famciclovir) herpes treatment.
Novartis said the injunction by the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit was issued two days after a district court in New Jersey denied a motion to stop Teva from marketing its version of the drug.
The injunction requires Teva to submit a response by next week.
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