The decade-long debate over ownership of living
human materials has recently intensified with the ability
of biomedical research to isolate, purify, and use human
genes and gene products as therapeutics, factories for
the production of therapeutics, and targets for the identification
of therapeutic pharmaceuticals. Indeed, advances in genomic
research have resulted in the identification of hundreds of
thousands of DNA fragments and hundreds of genes. Many within
the scientific and business communities believe genes and gene
fragments have commercial value and have filed patent applications
on the nucleic acid sequences. This commercialization has amplified
the discussion surrounding the ethics of patenting genes and the
ownership of the human genome.