The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C., was recently ordered by the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider a decision it made in July 2011. According to the appeals court, biotechnology company Myriad Genetics was allowed to hold patents on two human genes used to test individuals for breast and ovarian cancer.
The two genes at the center of the controversy are BRCA 1 and BRCA 2. In order to test individuals for both types of cancer, Myriad Genetics uses a test that examines extracted DNA for mutated genes. This allows the company to determine if individuals are at a heightened risk for either of the cancers.
A decision made by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in March 2010 disallowed the company from patenting the genes because they were considered, legally, laws of nature. The appeals court's ruling overturned this, based on the concept that the company tests for specific chemical forms of the two genes, not the genes as they appear naturally.
This argument was shot down by the Supreme Court. According to reports, patents have been limited by the Supreme Court in recent years. Patents covering abstract ideas, natural phenomena and laws of nature have been invalidated by the Supreme Court several times. In a similar case, the Supreme Court recently ruled that another company using gene-related patents to perform medical tests could not hold those patents.
Opponents of the patents are excited by ruling. A staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union said that companies should not be allowed to patent something as natural as DNA. The ACLU filed a lawsuit against Myriad in 2009, seeking to have the patents invalidated.
Source: Chemical and Engineering News, "Supreme Court Orders Review Of Gene Patents," Glenn Hess, Mar. 27, 2012
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