Natera wins first phase of patent trial over CareDx genetic tests

Jan 26 (Reuters) - Genetic-testing company Natera (NTRA.O), convinced a jury in Delaware federal court on Friday that medical diagnostics rival CareDx's (CDNA.O), AlloSure and AlloSeq kidney-transplant tests infringe one of its patents, a Natera spokesperson confirmed.

The jury will now consider how much Brisbane, California-based CareDx owes Natera in monetary damages. CareDx said in a court brief on Friday that Natera was seeking more than $149 million in lost profits.

A CareDx spokesperson said the jury determined that the company infringed one of two Natera patents at issue. The spokesperson said the company would have further comment at the end of the trial.

The verdict was not immediately publicly available. CareDx's stock price was down more than 17% on Friday afternoon following the news.

Austin, Texas-based Natera accused CareDx of infringing patents related to the use of cell-free DNA to assess the risk that a person's body will reject a kidney transplant. The jury on Friday determined after a week-long trial that CareDx's tests infringed one of the patents.

CareDx won a $45 million jury award against Natera for false advertising in a related case in 2022. A Delaware judge threw out the award last year, though he affirmed that Natera had falsely advertised that its competing Prospera tests were more effective than AlloSure.

The U.S. Supreme Court last year rejected CareDx's bid to revive patents that it had accused Natera of infringing in a separate case.

The case is Natera Inc v. CareDx Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No. 1:20-cv-00038.