Nearly 20 percent of all human genes in the human genome are protected by patents, which effectively grant ownership rights for a period of time. Although U.S. and European laws prohibit anyone from...

Nearly 20 percent of all human genes in the human genome are protected by patents, which effectively grant ownership rights for a period of time. Although U.S. and European laws prohibit anyone from patenting a gene as it exists in the human body, institutions have claimed that their unique way of isolating a gene or of developing a specific therapeutic use for it entitles them to patent protection. Of the more than 4,300 genes covered by patents, 63 percent are owned by corporations. (The rest belong to universities.) Most of the patented genes are associated with cancer (Jensen and Murray, 2005; Westphal, 2005).