Talk about a change of heart!
A ruling was released a few days ago by the US Department of Justice on the topic of genetic intellectual property laws, barring companies and individuals from claiming patents on isolated genetic sequences. For those of you unfamiliar with this incredibly controversial field, it essentially revolves around the question of whether or not any entity can “own” the rights to a particular sequence of the human genome.
Granted, this isn’t “own” as in “Hi, I’m Genencorp and I own your genes, now give them to me.” It’s a much more abstract and subtle sense of ownership, though it still has a strong impact on the world of biological research (and possibly on each of our lives).
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