Benzinga | Feb 25, 2021 09:23AM EST

Applied DNA Granted U.S. Patent Covering Methods of Utilizing DNA Tagged Submicron Particles for Authentication

Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:APDN) ("Applied DNA" or the "Company") a leader in Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-based DNA manufacturing, announced today that it has received United States Patent No. 10,920,274 entitled "Nucleic Acid Coated Submicron Particles for Authentication" from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The newly issued patent strengthens the Company's intellectual property position which includes 92 issued patents and 40 pending patent applications.

The claims of the issued patent cover methods of authenticating an object through the attachment and later authentication of submicron particles coated with a nucleic acid taggant. Claimed exemplary submicron particles include metal oxides, which encompass titanium dioxide and silicon dioxide that are commonly used as pharmaceutical and nutraceutical excipients for solid oral dosage forms and powdered formulations. In addition, submicron metal oxide particles are commonly used in the cosmetic industry.

"We are excited by our recent patent issuance, which we believe helps protect our CertainT(r) platform and its Signature(r) DNA molecular taggants as physical-chemical identifiers (PCID) for solid oral dosage forms and powders utilized in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical markets," said Dr. James Hayward, President and CEO, Applied DNA. "While much of our recent focus has been on the biotherapeutic applications of our LinearDNATM platform, the global problem of counterfeit or adulterated pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals has not gone away with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to pursue the implementation of the CertainT platform in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical markets as an important business vertical with our industry partners."