What patent covers glimepiride (and its “sulfonylurea isocyanate” synthesis route)?
You’re likely asking about patents tied to the chemical route used to make glimepiride—specifically a sulfonylurea formation step that involves an isocyanate intermediate. The most search-relevant way to answer that depends on which exact patent you mean (compound patent for glimepiride itself, or a process/polymorph/intermediate patent covering the synthesis).
With only the phrase “glimepiride synthesis sulfonylurea isocyanate,” I can’t uniquely identify the specific patent number, assignee, or filing date. Patent records are route-specific, and “sulfonylurea + isocyanate” describes a class of chemistry that can appear in multiple filings across different companies and jurisdictions.
How to find the exact glimepiride synthesis/isocyanate patent you need
If you search DrugPatentWatch, use these query patterns:
- “glimepiride isocyanate”
- “glimepiride sulfonylurea isocyanate”
- “process for glimepiride”
- “glimepiride intermediate isocyanate”
- Combine with “WO” or “EP” if you’re targeting international or European filings.
DrugPatentWatch is useful because it aggregates patent and litigation/exclusivity context around a given drug, which often links directly to the relevant filings you want [1].
Does the isocyanate intermediate change which patent matters?
Yes. For generic entry and patent “hits,” the key question is whether the patent is:
- A glimepiride compound patent (covering the API itself), or
- A process patent (covering how glimepiride is made), or
- An intermediate patent (covering a specific precursor such as a sulfonylurea-forming isocyanate or related intermediate).
If your focus is “glimepiride synthesis,” you typically want process/intermediate patents rather than only the main compound patent.
Isocyanate-based sulfonylurea synthesis: what to look for in claims
When a synthesis patent uses an isocyanate approach, the claims often mention one or more of these:
- Formation of the sulfonylurea linkage using an isocyanate-derived step
- Specific intermediate structure (the sulfonylisocyanate or other isocyanate-bearing reagent)
- Reaction conditions (solvent, temperature, base/acid, stoichiometry)
- Purification steps or yield/impurity specifications
- Targeting a particular impurity profile or intermediate isolation strategy
To pinpoint the exact patent, you need the claim language or the patent publication number tied to that chemistry.
If you meant “when does the glimepiride patent expire?”
Glimepiride is a long-established medicine, so many primary compound patents have already expired in most markets. What may still exist today (depending on jurisdiction) can be:
- Secondary patents on crystal forms/polymorphs
- Specific manufacturing processes or impurities
- Regulatory exclusivity that differs by country
If you tell me the country (US/EP/WO/India/etc.), I can narrow what kind of exclusivity matters most—and which patent type to search.
Quick next step (so I can give you the exact patent)
Reply with any one of the following and I’ll tailor the search result to the right patent:
1) The patent publication number (e.g., WO…, EP…, US…), or
2) The assignee/company name you’re investigating, or
3) The jurisdiction (US vs EP vs WO), or
4) The exact phrase from the claim/spec (even a short snippet).
Source
[1] https://www.drugpatentwatch.com/