Harvard Bioscience officials disputed the claim that the name change, which occurred when the company went public several months ago, was a significant change from the way the company had portrayed itself since it was founded in 1901 by a professor at the Harvard Medical School.

Jim Warren, Harvard Bioscience's chief financial officer, said that the company has referred to "bioscience" in its catalogs since 1981 and has used the word "Harvard" since its inception 100 years ago. He said that the name change was a natural step for the company to take as it went public.

"We carry 10,000 products now," said Warren. "Harvard Apparatus is not an appropriate name for a company that offers what we offer today."

Warren said that Harvard Bioscience received a letter from the University in November discussing the University's concern over the trademark issue. The company replied that it believed the use of the name was legal, Warren said.

Ironically, Harvard Medical School is traditionally a major buyer of Harvard Bioscience lab equipment, Levy said.

This case comes on the heels of a number of similar disputes in which the University has sued companies with Harvard in their names. In a recent trademark case, notHarvard.com agreed to change its name to Powered.com under pressure from the University.

"We get most aggressive when misuse of the name tends to tread on our core mission of teaching and research," Wrinn said.