* GeneMedicine Inc., of Houston, said U.S. patent No. 5,364,791, titled "Mutated Steroid Hormone Receptors and Methods for Their Use," was issued to Baylor College of Medicine, also of Houston. GeneMedicine has an exclusive license to the technology for gene therapy.

* Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Carlsbad, Calif., was issued two U.S. patents and was given notices of allowance for two others. No. 5,359,051, titled "Compounds Useful in the Synthesis of Nucleic Acids Capable of Cleaving DNA," covers two nucleotides that function as small synthetic ribozymes that can incorporated into antisense oligonucleotide drugs. Patent No. 5,359,044 for "Cyclobutyl Oligonucleotide Surrogates" was issued jointly to Isis and Ciba Geigy Corp. The allowance notices covered oligonucleosides that have backbones that are modified to replace phosphate.

* AMDL Inc., of Pasadena, Calif., received notice of allowance for a U.S. patent covering for a universal-tumor marker detection system.

* Biocontrol Technology Inc., of Pittsburgh, said it was issued a U.S. patent on a specialized method for whole-body extracorpeal hyperthermia used in treatment of HIV.

* Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Boulder, Colo., said two more patents covering its ribozyme technology were issued. One claims an RNA ribozyme that can cleave to its substrate RNA without formation of a covalent bond. The other claims catalytic RNA molecules with modified nucleosides.

* Sepracor Inc., of Marlborough, Mass., was granted U.S. patent No. 5,362,755 covering the use of R-albuterol, the single-isomer version of albuterol.

* Homes Inc., of Toronto, was allowed U.S. patent application No. 08/187,316 for efficient and economic purification of proteins through a process of self-displacement chromatography.

* Immunomedics Inc., of Morris Plains, N.J., was issued U.S. patent No. 5,364,612 covering new methods and compounds to detect certain cardiovascular lesions.

(c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.