Adecade-long war over genetically modified mice still rages. In 1994, Klaus Rajewsky's laboratory at the University of Cologne in Germany created the first transgenic conditional knockout mouse.1 With this mouse, researchers could turn on a genetic mutation at a specific period of development in a specific type of cell. Rajewsky assumed that his mouse would soon be used in labs throughout the world. Simply pleased with his research success, he never considered applying for a patent on a mouse. "It was a European university, and we didn't work that way," he says. Nonetheless, Rajewsky soon found that DuPont of Wilmington, Del., worked just that way.
Rajewsky's mouse did not show up in labs as quickly as he expected. In fact, Rajewsky found himself filling out a DuPont Material Transfer Agreement form every time a colleague requested one of his mice. The form made Rajewsky promise to not share the mouse ...
