Biotechnology company Enanta Pharmaceuticals slapped Pfizer with a patent infringement lawsuit and is seeking compensation for the vaccine-maker's antiviral treatment, Paxlovid.
The complaint, filed June 22, alleges Pfizer breached Enanta's patent that "discloses and claims compounds and pharmaceutically acceptable salts which inhibit coronavirus replication activity, and methods of treating a coronavirus infection." The targeted ingredient is Paxlovid's nirmatrelvir tablets, according to the suit.
Pfizer did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Enanta filed the patent in July 2020, two years before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office approved it, according to a press release. The Watertown, Mass.-based business said it recognizes the importance of the nation's most popular COVID-19 treatment and does not seek to block the "production, sale or distribution" of Paxlovid.