Just as a gene sequence is not a drug, information is not a cure.
The test literally untwists the virus' genetic material, allowing researchers to create a gene-by-gene sequence of it.
Instead, Celera's business plan involves selling access to the technologies it has developed in order to use the gene sequence.
This methylation pattern played as great a role in determining a mouse's coat colour as did the underlying gene sequence.
Venter, who founded Celera Genomics (nyse: CRA - news - people ), was instrumental in creating Celera's gene sequence.
For instance, Epogen, made by Amgen (nasdaq: AMGN - news - people ), was derived from a single gene sequence.
One roadblock to synthbio's future is the messed-up patent environment in biotech, where every tiny protein pathway and gene sequence has an owner wanting to get paid.
FORBES: Drew Endy aims to reinvent the biotechnology industry.
Venter and his partner in technology, Tony White, need to sell a lot more of it if they are to have any hope of translating that gene sequence into useful medical products.
These are all far from the absolute ban on copying that patents provide, and would solve the problem facing researchers who must isolate a patented gene sequence in order to study it.
FORBES: What If They Treated Gene Patents Like Nautical Charts?
But a Cornell Law School scholar suggests the court should take another approach, one that has been around for at least 250 years over another type of intellectual property that is strikingly similar to a gene sequence: Charts and maps.
FORBES: What If They Treated Gene Patents Like Nautical Charts?
Lately, Applied has taken over Celera's original business, selling gene-sequence subscriptions to drug companies, while Celera focuses on developing its own products.
It is a fast-growing North Atlantic salmon that contains a new Chinook salmon growth hormone gene and a DNA regulatory sequence that keeps the gene turned on all year instead of only during the warmer months, as in nature.
Ravicher, an engineer and lecturer in law at Cardozo, said the court should simply declare that the natural sequence of proteins that make up a gene is not eligible for patent.
FORBES: Big Question For Supreme Court: Can You Patent A Gene?
When he finished in 1992, he didn't have enough funding left to put the gene in bacteria--a necessary test if he was to be sure he had the right DNA sequence.
应用推荐