BERLIN—Chemicals and pharmaceuticals giant Bayer AG is joining forces with Germany’s CureVac NV to support the biotech firm in its development of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Under the deal, Bayer, best known for its aspirin, will support CureVac with expertise in drug development and infrastructure, including supporting clinical work, regulatory affairs and supply-chain management, the two companies said. The partnership is part of a now-familiar pattern in which big pharmaceutical companies have swooped in to help smaller players with promising Covid-19 vaccine candidates.
Pfizer Inc. and Germany’s BioNTech SE co-developed the first Western-made vaccine to make it to market.
AstraZeneca PLC, meanwhile, teamed up with the University of Oxford on a vaccine now being rolled out in the U.K., India and other markets.
Such partnerships can allow smaller firms to move from development and testing to more complicated and expensive human trials necessary to gauge a vaccine’s effectiveness and safety. Should a vaccine work, a big pharmaceutical company’s deep pockets and expertise in manufacturing and distribution is crucial to rolling it out on a large scale.
