aaiPharma Inc., of Wilmington, N.C., said it received U.S. Patent No. 6,262,085 titled ¿Alkoxy Substituted Benzimidazole Compounds, Pharmaceutical Preparations Containing the Same and Methods of Using the Same,¿ and Patent No. 6,262,086 titled ¿Pharmaceutical Unit Dosage Form.¿ Both relate to the pharmaceutically active compound omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor used for the treatment of active duodenal ulcers, benign gastric ulcers, erosive esophogitis and gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Biokeys Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, said U.S. Patent No. 6,265,539 titled ¿Prophylaxis and Therapy of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome¿ has been issued to the Board of Regents of the University of Texas. Biokeys is the exclusive worldwide licensee of the patent and a portfolio of patents and patent application covering the development of a cell-mediated immunity vaccine for HIV.

Copernicus Therapeutics Inc., of Cleveland, said Case Western Reserve University, also of Cleveland, received U.S. Patent No. 6,261,787 titled ¿Bifunctional Molecules for Delivery of Therapeutics.¿ Copernicus has the rights to this and other related technologies developed by the university. This patent covers drug compositions that deliver therapeutic molecules to the luminal surface of epithelial cells.

CytRx Corp., of Atlanta, said it was granted the reissue of a U.S. patent covering the company¿s Flocor highly purified copolymers for the treatment of sickle cell disease.

Direct Therapeutics Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., said it was granted U.S. patent No. 6,203,526 for a medical injection device used during image-guided surgery. The device is designed to optimize the delivery of a drug or other therapeutic agent directly into a variety of human tissues.

EndoMatrix Inc., of Napa, Calif., said it was granted U.S. Patent No. 6,255,296 titled ¿Composition and Method for the Treating of a Patient Susceptible to or Suffering from a Cardiovascular Disorder or Disease.¿ The patent addresses endothelial dysfunction, which is a critical process in a number of degenerative diseases including heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, kidney failure and Alzheimer¿s disease.

Galenica Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Birmingham, Ala., said it received U.S. Patent No. 6,262,029 titled ¿Chemically Modified Saponins and the Use Thereof as Adjuvants,¿ which covers a new family of semisynthetic immune-enhancing saponin derivatives.

Immunomedics Inc., of Morris Plains, N.J., said it was granted U.S. Patent No. 6,254,868, which involves genetically engineering a glycosylation site for attaching diverse drugs and isotopes to a part of an antibody that is away from its binding end, thus not affecting antibody targeting. Through this patent the company is focusing on the use of its B-cell-specific antibody, CD22, for the therapy of non-Hodgkin¿s lymphoma.