© ARTPARTNER-IMAGES/GETTY IMAGESUpdate: This article outlining the background of the Myriad Genetics case and its implications for the scientific community was written for the July issue of the print magazine, which went to press before the June 13 Supreme Court decision to ban the patenting of human genes. Author Joan Ellis updates her position here:
Last week’s unanimous Supreme Court decision that genes and the information they encode are not patentable was hardly surprising. The Court simply maintained its long established position that products of nature “lie beyond the domain of patent protection.” The Court's holding that cDNA is patent eligible and its explicit statement that it was not passing judgment on methods of using, isolating and manipulating genes means that the biotech and pharmaceutical industries should not be severely impacted. These companies can continue to develop and protect diagnostic assays, therapeutics, etc. that use DNA. After all, the practical application of a DNA sequence has always been where its true value lies.
On April 15, the US Supreme Court considered for the first time whether or not human genes ...
