Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Wednesday announced that ithas received notices of allowance from the U.S. Patent andTrademark Office for three patent applications.

One application covers biologically active forms of amylin, asecond covers methods of treating insulin resistance withcompounds that reduce amylin's activity, and the third coversamylin receptor technology useful for identifying andevaluating compounds that may be used to counteract or mimicamylin action, said Amylin (NASDAQ:AMLN) of San Diego.

The first patent "will complement our exclusive rights to anissued U.S. patent which covers the basic 37 amino acidsequence of amylin," said Bradford Duft, Amylin vice presidentand general counsel.

The second allowed application is directed broadly to thetreatment of insulin resistance using amylin antagonists,including amylin receptor antagonist, the company said. Thethird covers assays useful for identifying or assessing activityof compounds that act as agonists (activators) or antagonists(blockers) at amylin receptors.

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