CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2018
| Author | Komluski, Luka |
|---|---|
| Title | Human genes as patents - Comparative USA and EU legal approach |
| Summary | Inventions made a leap from steam machines to technically modified microorganism and finally genetic inventions took the limelight. In the onset of the age of genetic inventions, human genes were firstly thought to be a non-patentable subject matter however that concept was abolished. As the technology further advances it give birth to express sequence tags or ESTs. They are small sequences of cDNA and extracted with a gene sequencing machine. EST is primarily used as a shortcut in pinpoint only the expressing genes, which are the genes that carry information for the protein synthesis. Unfortunately EST can only locate the expressed gene but it cannot provide any further information about it, in other terms it can locate something for what there is yet no information about its characteristic or function. Subsequently after the NIH’s EST patent application is filled it gave rise to a fear that EST will create a patent ticket. General opinion that ESTs patents can get exclusive right over the sequence for which they tag. EST producing companies would have an exclusive right to exclude others from commercially exploit them. This complex situation sparked the desire to further research the probability of ESTs satisfying patentability requirements in the two most biotechnology advanced continents Europe and United States. The methodology would be comparative where ESTs would be compared to patentability requirements prescribed by patent law both of Europe and United States. Previous research conducted by the Trilateral office will be used as the starting point on with an attempt to agree with their findings. Thesis will start with the general introduction on biotechnology, after the overview of the scientific background which will be followed with deeper explanation of EST problem. Analytical part will start with the overview of the European and United states patent law and subsequently each patentability requirement will be assessed individually in connection to EST’s probability to satisfy it. With my research I have concluded that findings of EPO and USPTO were founded and with that I agreed with their result. |
| Supervisor | Sganga, Caterina |
| Department | Legal Studies LLM |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2018/komluski_luka.pdf |
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