No second PI for 10x against NanoString, UPC rules

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

No second PI for 10x against NanoString, UPC rules

Munich.jpg
Munich

Judge Matthias Zigann said the panel wasn’t convinced that NanoString had infringed the 10x Genomics patent

The Unified Patent Court refused to grant a second preliminary injunction for 10x Genomics against rival biotech company NanoString in Munich today, October 10.

Presiding judge Matthias Zigann said the panel was unconvinced that NanoString had infringed 10x’s patent.

The judge said the panel’s findings on infringement and validity were not prejudicial on the main proceedings.

10x won the first full PI hearing in the court’s history last month over a separate but related patent. That ruling meant NanoString cannot sell its allegedly infringing products in 17 European countries while proceedings are ongoing.

The lawsuit concerns NanoString’s CosMx Spatial Molecular Imager device and CosMx reagents for RNA detection.

10x claimed NanoString infringed patents related to Xenium, the company’s own RNA analysis tool that it launched in December 2022.

There is parallel litigation between the parties at the US District Court for the District of Delaware, where 10x has also filed two infringement lawsuits.

Trials have been scheduled in Delaware in November 2023 and September 2024.

NanoString has argued that 10x’s technology was originally developed at Harvard University with grant funding from the US National Institutes of Health, with the intention it would be made widely available via licensing.

Harvard exclusively licensed the technology to ReadCoor, which was acquired by 10x in 2020.

“In contrast with the promises made in the grant application, 10x is now using the acquired ReadCoor patents in lawsuits designed to reduce the scientific community’s access to innovative technologies intended for broad access,” NanoString has claimed.

Germany’s Federal Patent Court has also issued a preliminary opinion in which it found the claims of one of 10x’s key patents to be valid. An oral hearing has been scheduled for May 2024.

The Munich Regional Court, meanwhile, granted an injunction in favour of 10x in May this year. NanoString has appealed against that ruling to the Higher Regional Court.

10x may yet appeal the latest UPC ruling. The UPC has yet to schedule a date for a trial on the merits of the case.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Counsel explain how AI can create brand protection headaches, but also be used to fight fakes
An AI copyright update in the UK and IP protection efforts by Temu and WeChat were also among the top talking points this week
Mary Till says she has been helping clients navigate policy questions, including staffing concerns at the office
A seminal decision concerning second medical use patents and questions over confidentiality were among the top talking points this fortnight
Managing IP considers some of the key themes from the 2025 Annual Meeting and offers some tips for London 2026
A comparison of the 2024 and 2025 editions of the Managing IP EMEA Awards reveals the firms and companies that have been dominating Europe’s IP market year after year
Tuesday's coverage includes BD tips for aspiring partners, and a foray into the world of SEPs
Exclusive data reveals law firms are failing to go above and beyond for their corporate clients, with in-house counsel saying advisers should consider more transparent billing processes
Arty Rajendra and Gary Moss discuss why ‘thorough and intense’ preparation, plus the odd glass of wine, led to a record FRAND victory for their client
Monday’s coverage includes news of a potentially 'game-changing' trademark development in China and how practitioners are using AI
Gift this article