MADISON, N.J., March 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wyeth (NYSE:WYE) responded to the ruling today by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in the case of Israel Bio-Engineering Project v. Amgen, Inc. The Court reversed a previous summary judgment ruling and sent the case back to the district court to determine if Israel Bio-Engineering Project has any ownership rights in the patent in suit.

Wyeth believes the appeals court ruling deals with a very preliminary issue, and the Company will ultimately prevail on the issue of ownership. Today's ruling also has no impact on the Company's defenses of non-infringement or patent validity, and the Company continues to believe that the patent in question in this case is not relevant to Enbrel(R) (etanercept).

Wyeth is one of the world's largest research-driven pharmaceutical and health care products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing, and marketing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biotechnology products and nonprescription medicines that improve the quality of life for people worldwide. The Company's major divisions include Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare and Fort Dodge Animal Health.

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