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This Federal Circuit opinion analyzes
lexicography in the context of claim construction.
Background
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals owns U.S. Patent Nos. 11,246,933
(parent) and 11,382,979 (child). These patents relate to
biodegradable lipids and their use for the delivery of active
agents such as nucleic acids.
Alnylam accused Moderna, Inc., ModernaTX, Inc., and Moderna US,
Inc. (collectively, "Moderna") of patent infringement in
the District Court of Delaware. Specifically, Alnylam alleged that
Moderna's activities involving its mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine
SPIKEVAX® infringed the '933 and '979 patents.
The "branched alkyl" claim
term was at issue with respect to claim construction. Generally, a
cationic lipid includes three distinct domains: a head group, a
linker, and hydrophobic tails. In one example of a cationic lipid
from the specification, each of two hydrophobic tails is made up of
an alkyl group R12, a biodegradable group M1,
and an
