Bayer’s Monsanto has sued COVID-19 vaccine makers Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna for allegedly misusing its messenger RNA (mRNA) technology in manufacturing their vaccines.
The lawsuit in the Delaware federal court was confirmed by a Bayer spokesperson on Tuesday, local time.
The patent infringement lawsuits said the companies copied technology developed by Monsanto in the 80s for strengthening mRNA in crops in order to stabilise the genetic material used in their vaccines.
Bayer separately filed a similar lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson in New Jersey federal court, arguing that a DNA-based process J&J used in manufacturing its shots infringed the patent.
A Moderna spokesperson said the company was aware of the lawsuit and would defend itself.
Spokespeople for Pfizer, BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson did not immediately respond to Reuters’s requests for comment.
Bayer’s complaints add to a web of patent lawsuits over the blockbuster COVID-19 shots, which include an ongoing lawsuit filed by Moderna against Pfizer in 2022.
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