Moderna hit by lawsuit as Arbutus, Genevant seek damages for use of COVID-19 vaccine patents
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The clinical-stage biopharma company Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) and Genevant Sciences have filed a lawsuit on Monday against Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) and an affiliate of the biotech seeking damages for violation of certain U.S. patents related to the companyâs blockbuster COVID-19 shot, MRNA-1273.
However, the companies do not intend to block the sale, production, or distribution of the vaccine, an important tool in the fight against COVID-19 in the U.S.
Arbutus (ABUS) has added ~6% and Moderna (MRNA) has lost ~2% in the pre-market on Monday.
âArbutus and its licensee Genevant do not seek an injunction or otherwise seek to impede the sale, manufacture or distribution of MRNA-1273,â Arbutus (ABUS) Chief Executive Officer William Collier remarked.
The patent numbers 8,058,069, 8,492,359, 8,822,668, 9,364,435, 9,504,651, and 11,141,378 relate to the nucleic acid-lipid particles and lipid vesicles, as well as compositions and methods for their use.
The patents in question have been licensed to Genevant Sciences, which is jointly owned by Arbutus (ABUS) and Roivant Sciences (NASDAQ:ROIV). In December, a federal court rejected an appeal filed by Moderna (MRNA) to invalidate a ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that asserted the patent claims of Arbutus.