Moderna says patent ruling not to affect COVID-19 vaccine development

Moderna Inc said on Friday its formula used in developing a COVID-19 vaccine was not covered under patents owned by Arbutus Biopharma.

An administrative court run by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Thursday rejected Moderna`s arguments to invalidate a U.S. patent owned by Arbutus, sparking worries over its efforts to develop next-generation vaccines, including a coronavirus vaccine.

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Moderna said the court`s ruling relates to actions it took in response to "longstanding aggressive posture" taken by Arbutus against developers of nucleic acid-based therapeutics and began well before the development of mRNA-1273, its COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

Moderna shares were up slightly in extended trading, while Arbutus shares closed down 20% on Friday.