Pfizer Inc. entered into agreements with three smaller companies to provide the technology for the Covid-19 vaccine and increased its commitment to a generic approach.
As per Bloomberg News, Pfizer will pay $300 upfront as part of $1.35 billion total to Beam Therapeutics Inc. for partnering on the technology used for editing DNA. Pfizer will gain access to technology in the other two deals that synthesize genetic material and deliver it to cells.
The CEO of Pfizer, Albet Bourla, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television that the three deals would be a top priority for him and Pfizer this year.
The New York-based Pfizer, which had accumulated substantial capital with the sale of its Covid-19 vaccine, wants to invest that amount back into this space, according to Bourla.
Pfizer Covid vaccine, which was developed in collaboration with BioNTech SE, its German partner, became the largest selling and the most important pharmaceutical product of all time. The RNA shot, which has difficulty shipping and storing due to temperature constraints, is expected to garner more than $ 36 billion it had for 2021 and outselling both Johnson & Johnson and Astra Zeneca, which use other methods to grow antibodies against Covid.
The deal was announced on the first day of the JPMorgan Healthcare Annual Conference that signaled the expectation of Pfizer for the future potential of mRNA and other genetic products. Over the years, Pfizer collaborated with BioNTech to develop products in this area, but now it wants to build its Franchise.
Bourla informed that Pfizer aims to go beyond infectious diseases and will use mRNA to target cancer and other rare diseases.
A technique called base editing, which is used for manipulating DNA precisely will now have Pfizer working in partnership with Beam Therapeutics Inc. on it for developing therapies in rare genetic diseases.
Pfizer will now be using the Codex DNA Inc. technology under a licensing agreement to make synthetic genetics proteins in its Covid-19 vaccines and other drugs. Codex DNA will receive more than $ 100 million and an upfront fee in the deal if it goes through with certain objectives.
The third deal of Pfizer is with Acuitus Therapeutics, a company that manufactures lipid nanoparticles used to deliver genetic material into bodies. The lipids are used as carriers for the mRNA in Pfizer’s Covid vaccines. The financial deals of the terms were not disclosed.
According to Bourla, partnerships are a better way to acquire technologies Pfizer wants without investing capital in developing such companies. Pfizer’s partnership model with BioNTech has been successful so far.
The shares of Pfizer and Beam Therapeutics fell by 1 % and 4.6 %, respectively, while Codex added 11% in New York Monday.
In the meantime, competitors of Pfizer are also doubling their capacities in genetic technologies. Rivals Moderna Inc., makers of Covid vaccine, is also working on mRNA vaccines for respiratory diseases, including influenza. Legacy players in the pharmaceutical industry such as Eli Lilley and J&J have also shown interest in this field.
