SECRETIN-BEVERIDGE AND THE U. S. PATENT LAW
Report of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry
Two years ago the Council published reports on two proprietary preparations said to contain secretin, namely, “Secretogen,” sold by the G. W. Carnrick Company (The Journal A. M. A., May 1, 1915, p. 1518), and “Duodenin,” sold by Armour and Company (The Journal A. M. A., Aug. 14, 1915, p. 639). These reports explained that there was no evidence to indicate that an insufficient amount of secretin was the cause of gastro-intestinal diseases, and further that there was no evidence that secretin in any form was physiologically active when administered by the mouth.
Subsequently, A. J. Carlson and his co-workers, at the request of the Council, studied the question of the stability of secretin and demonstrated (The Journal A. M. A., Jan. 15, 1916, pp. 178 and 208) that commercial secretin preparations contained no secretin and, further, that secretin given both by the mouth and even in enormous doses directly into the intestine is entirely inactive.
Shortly after the publication of Professor Carlson’s work the attention of the Council was called to a U. S. patent issued, May 2, 1916, to James Wallace Beveridge, “Means for and Method of Stabilizing Secretin.” In this patent Beveridge claimed to have invented “The process of producing secretin in stable form as a commercial article for therapeutic use ...” that is, a process for preparing preparations which would contain secretin when they reach the consumer and in a form resisting destruction in its passage through the stomach.
In view of the demonstrated instability of secretin, the Council asked Professor Carlson to investigate the validity of the claims of the Beveridge patent. The study on “The Question of the Stability of Secretin,” by A. J. Carlson, A. E. Kanter and I. Tumpowski, which appears below, shows that the Beveridge patent furnishes no process for the manufacture of commercially stable secretin preparations, nor any means for preventing the destruction of secretin by the gastric juice when administered orally. It further demonstrates that the preparation made by Beveridge was devoid of secretin.
The Council adopted the report of Carlson and his co-workers, and declared Secretin-Beveridge inadmissible to New and Nonofficial Remedies.
The Council directed that the report of Carlson and his collaborators be sent to the Commissioner of Patents with a protest against the granting of patents without competent and thorough investigation of the claims advanced therein.
W. A. Puckner, Secretary.