title: "Trust is not something you can reclaim easily": patenting in the field of direct-to-consumer genetic testing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Recently, 23andMe announced that it had obtained its first patent, related to "polymorphisms associated with Parkinson's disease" (US-B-8187811). This announcement immediately sparked controversy in the community of 23andMe users and research participants, especially with regard to issues of transparency and trust. The purpose of this article was to analyze the patent portfolio of this prominent direct-to-consumer genetic testing company and discuss the potential ethical implications of patenting in this field for public participation in Web-based genetic research.
  
  
  METHODS
  We searched the publicly accessible patent database Espacenet as well as the commercially available database Micropatent for published patents and patent applications of 23andMe.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Six patent families were identified for 23andMe. These included patent applications related to: genetic comparisons between grandparents and grandchildren, family inheritance, genome sharing, processing data from genotyping chips, gamete donor selection based on genetic calculations, finding relatives in a database, and polymorphisms associated with Parkinson disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An important lesson to be drawn from this ongoing controversy seems to be that any (private or public) organization involved in research that relies on human participation, whether by providing information, body material, or both, needs to be transparent, not only about its research goals but also about its strategies and policies regarding commercialization.
authors.affiliation: Bioethics Institute Ghent, Universiteit Gent, Gent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Sigrid
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sterckx
authors.forename: Julian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cockbain
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Howard
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Huys
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Borry
mesh_terms: D016208:Databases, Factual; D036281:Genetic Research / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005820:Genetic Testing / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D019981:Health Care Sector / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D018973:Intellectual Property; D020407:Internet; D035502:Trust