Gene sequences may now be more easily patented in light of a new ruling
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Since its creation a dozen years ago, the Federal Circuit has been a centralized court of appeals for issues of patent law. The court hears appeals from the PTO in patent prosecutions and from District Courts in patent infringement cases. Decisions of the Federal Circuit set the legal standards, unless and until the U.S. Supreme Court addresses a particular issue.
51 F.3d 1552, 34 U.S.P.Q.2d 1210 (Fed. Cir. 1995) (Deuel II)
Other requirements must be met for patentability, but this article addresses only the “nonobviousness” requirement.
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Anticipation of a claim is established when a prior art reference provides an enabling disclosure of each and every element of the claim, expressly or inherently. 35 U.S.C. § 102.
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Yablonsky, M., Hone, W. Patenting DNA Sequences. Nat Biotechnol 13, 656–657 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0795-656
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0795-656
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