Anti-opioid mAb patent, University of Minnesota, 7th Apr

ChangeBridge: Patent Grants - Pharma (A61K)

Published April 7th, 2026

Detected April 7th, 2026

Summary

The USPTO granted patent US12594330B2 to the Regents of the University of Minnesota covering opioid-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), methods of manufacturing those antibodies, and therapeutic uses. The patent claims cover treatment of opioid use disorder, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome, and opioid overdose prevention and reversal. The invention also extends to detection of opioids in screening, diagnostic, or forensic assays.

View original document View source feed page

What changed

The USPTO issued patent US12594330B2 to the Regents of the University of Minnesota on April 7, 2026, covering anti-opioid monoclonal antibodies and associated methods. The 12 granted claims protect compositions comprising opioid-specific mAbs, methods of manufacturing those antibodies, and therapeutic applications including treating opioid use disorder, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome, preventing and reversing opioid overdose, and detecting opioids in assays. The invention, invented by Marco Pravetoni and Carly Baehr, provides intellectual property protection for a novel immunological approach to addressing the opioid crisis.

Affected parties include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies developing opioid-targeted therapeutics, healthcare providers offering addiction treatment services, and clinical laboratories conducting opioid screening. This patent establishes enforceable IP rights that may require licensing for commercialization of related mAb products or diagnostic assays. Universities and research institutions conducting similar work should review the claim scope to assess potential freedom-to-operate implications.

What to do next

Monitor for updates

Source document (simplified)

← USPTO Patent Grants

Anti-opioid compounds and methods of making and using same

Grant US12594330B2 Kind: B2 Apr 07, 2026

Assignee

REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

Inventors

Marco Pravetoni, Carly Baehr

Abstract

This disclosure describes opioid-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb), methods of making those antibodies, and methods of using those antibodies. The methods include, for example, treating a subject with an opioid use disorder or neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome or preventing and reversing opioid overdose in a subject. Additionally or alternatively, the antibodies may be used to detect opioids including, for example, in a screening, diagnostic, or forensic assay.