Pros and cons fight over the issue of loosening stem cell patents
E021116Y1 Dec. 2002（E40）
The scope of patents concerning stem cells, animal breeds and plant varieties are involved in enormous business opportunities about tissue engineering, tested animals and transgenics of flowers and plants. Therefore, it became the focus drastically discussed by all circles during the course of recent amendments to the Patent Law as to whether to open patents concerning stem cell lines “that can continue differentiating,” animal breeds and plant varieties.
According to the “Examination Standards for Bio-related Inventions” recently announced by the Intellectual Property Office, the government has in principle agreed to give protection to stem cell patents; however, stem cell lines that are likely to continue differentiating and thus produce cloned humans or human organs are still not subject to the scope of patent protection. On the part of patents for animal breeds and plant varieties, the current Patent Law and the bill of amendments to the Patent Law pending examination at the Legislative Yuan both explicitly prohibit protection to animal breeds and plant varieties.
Those who oppose against overall opening to biotech patents considered the above move will induce doctors to use a patient’s body tissue without the patient’s consent to gain profits. Besides, granting patents for plant varieties may enable farmers to encounter recourse for royalties from business syndicates, in which case farmers’ room for survival will be further compressed.
On the other hand, the biotech industry generally gave positive opinions as it considered that capacity of Taiwan’s biotech R&D has been promoted entirely under launch of national programs on agricultural biotechnology and biotechnological pharmacy. Therefore, the outcome of research cannot be promoted to Asia-Pacific unless through patent protection, and such protection may attract foreign biotech enterprises to set up R&D organizations in Taiwan.
