Moderna said it is suing Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech for patent infringment tied to the development of the first Covid-19 vaccines.
The US biotech company alleges the mRNA technology it developed prior to the pandemic had been duplicated by the party it is gearing to sue. The lawsuit, which reportedly seek an unspecified financial damage had been filed both in the US and Germany.
Commenting on this, Pfizer said it was “surprised” and affirms they will “vigorously defend” against the allegations made. Moderna is pushing the lawsuit as it believes the Pfizer/BioNTech partners copied two key elements of its intellectual property.
One of the elements involve a “chemical modification” which Moderna claims its scientists were first to demonstrate in human trials in 2015. Moderna further said the vaccine it tested “avoids provoking an undesirable immune response.”
The second alleged infringement relates to how both vaccines target distinctive spike protein on the exterior of the virus.
“We are filing these lawsuits to protect the innovative mRNA technology platform that we pioneered, invested billions of dollars in creating, and patented during the decade preceding the Covid-19 pandemic,” Moderna Chief Executive Stephane Bancel said.