Are natural products and medical diagnostic tests still eligible for patents in the USA?
In 2010, the biotechnology and molecular diagnostics industries were shocked by the decision from a US District Court to the effect that isolated endogenous DNA and diagnostic tests based on newly discovered DNA sequences were not eligible for US patents. The case related to the BRCA1/2 genes for breast and ovarian cancer. On appeal, the decision was almost entirely overturned. However, in March 2012, the US Supreme Court vacated the appeal court decision and instructed the appeals court to rehear the case in the light of its very recent decision, which suggested that products of nature and their obvious uses should not be patentable. This commentary explores the points at issue.
European Patent Attorney, Willow 42 Southmoor Road, Oxford OX2 6RD, UK. julian.cockbane@btopenworld.com.
Julian
J
Cockbain
Sigrid
S
Sterckx
D001688:Biological Products; D004247:DNA; D003955:Diagnostic Tests, Routine; D006801:Humans; D010330:Patents as Topic; D014481:United States
D001688:Biological Products; D004247:DNA