The Imugene Ltd (ASX: IMU) share price is leaping higher today, up 7.5% at the time of writing.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) biotechnology company closed yesterday trading for 9.3 cents. Shares are currently swapping hands for 10 cents apiece.
Here's why ASX 200 investors are hitting the buy button today.
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What did the ASX 200 biotech stock report?
The Imugene share price is racing higher after the company reported it had received a core patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The patent protects its oncolytic virotherapy CF33 products, including VAXINIA and CHECKVacc.
Imugene said both the method of composition and method of use of its licensed oncolytic virotherapy will be protected under the US patent until 2037.
According to the release, CF33 is a chimeric vaccinia poxvirus from the lab of inventor professor Yuman Fong. Oncolytic viruses are designed to selectively kill tumour cells and activate the immune system against cancer cells, with the potential to improve clinical response and survival.
Commenting on the patent grant sending the Imugene share price sharply higher today, CEO Leslie Chong said, "Imugene receiving this patent allowance for the CF33 family of oncolytic viruses from the US patent office is a crucial step forward."
She noted that the US is the biggest healthcare market on Earth, making "this is a particularly important patent milestone".
Imugene share price snapshot
Despite today's big intraday lift, the Imugene share price remains down a painful 62% over the past 12 months.
Investors who bought shares five years ago, however, will be sitting on gains of 400%.
