Advanced Life Sciences Inc., of Woodridge, Ill., was awarded U.S. Patent No. 6,399,654 regarding biflavanoids and derivatives thereof as antiviral agents.

Antigenics Inc., of New York, was issued 15 U.S. patents expanding the protection of its heat shock protein technology platform, particularly extending the company's use of HSPs to treat cancers and infectious diseases.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., of Novato, Calif., was issued U.S. Patent No. 6,426,208 covering Aldurazyme (laronidase) for the treatment of mucopolysaccharidosis I. Aldurazyme is a specific form of purified recombinant human alpha-L-iduronidase that is being investigated as an enzyme replacement therapy for MPS I.

Cellegy Pharmaceuticals Inc., of South San Francisco, was issued U.S. Patent No. 6,423,683 titled "Microdose Therapy." The patent delineates methods of treating several peripheral vascular disease states, including female sexual dysfunction and Raynaud's disease.

Digene Corp., of Gaithersburg, Md., was issued U.S. Patent No. 6,355,424 B1 titled "Assessment of Human Papillomavirus-Related Disease."

Introgen Therapeutics Inc., of Austin, Texas, and The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center said the university's board of regents was issued U.S. Patent No. 6,410,010. The patent broadly covers all adenoviral p53 compositions, therapeutic and otherwise, that express adequate p53 in amounts sufficient to suppress the growth of or kill cancer cells in patients, including Advexin, Introgen's p53 cancer therapeutic.