U.S. PTO to Continue Gene Patents, BIO and AUTM File Brief

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The Dow Jones news service reports today (2 November) that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (U.S. PTO) will continue to consider applications for gene-related patents, while the Justice Department has come out against such patents in a friend-of-court brief filed late on Friday in a case challenging them.

David Kappos, undersecretary of commerce for intellectual property and U.S. PTO director told Dow Jones, “The U.S. PTO at the present time is maintaining the status quo,” adding “We’re continuing with current procedures as they are.”

In related news, the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), joined by the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM), filed a friend-of-court brief in the same case. They contend that isolated DNA molecules are new man-made compositions of matter, as well as chemical compounds with new and distinctive properties and uses, compared to naturally-occurring DNA. The Department of Justice brief argued that isolated DNA material is no less of a derived natural product than cotton fibers from cotton seeds.

In the brief, BIO and AUTM also argue that patents on isolated DNA promote innovation and removing the patents would have far-reaching negative consequences, citing recent surveys showing gene patents do not impede the progress of science.

The Department of Justice’s brief made a distinction between genomic DNA isolated from the human body and engineered genetic material. While the brief opposed making isolated natural DNA eligible for patents, it did not oppose patents on genes that resulted from transformation or manipulation of raw materials of the genome.

Related:  Report: U.S. to Oppose Gene Patenting