Nanomedicine Patent Thickets Threaten Future

cheesedog writes "Over 5000 nanomedicine/nanotech patents have now been granted, and the patent land grab continues unabated. Dr. Raj Bawa says, "Patent thickets are considered to discourage and stifle innovation. Claims in such patent thickets have been characterized as often broad, overlapping and conflicting - a scenario ripe for massive patent litigation battles in the future." According to Bawa, nanomedicine start-ups may soon find themselves in patent disputes with large, established companies, as well as between themselves. In most of the patent battles the larger entity with the deeper pockets will rule the day even if the innovators are on the other side."

Comments

Foreign Front

[Saeed al-Sahaf]

I think one of the fronts for patent reform will come from outside the US border, when other countries finally wise up and simply make it their national policy to ignore stupid patents (or all patents).

Re:5000 nanomedicine patents bad news?

[ColdWetDog]

With the availability of the human genome, we should be seeing an EXPLOSION in the number of drug treatments for various diseases. And yet, how many medicines gained FDA approval in 2005 for use on humans? 20. Yep - lowest number ever

What?

Your thesis is that by knowing the human genome, then drug treatments for diseases logically follow. Sorry, but although that may be the promise of genomics, the actual yield of useful therapeutics remains to be seen. You don't automagically understand the molecular pathways of the normal process and the disease just by staring at the DNA sequence. Lots of hard work, luck, time and money have to get done before a pill rolls out of the bottle. Not that I'm trying to apologize for big pharma's incredible waste and inefficiency, not to mention bizzare and shady business practices (some of which have to do with technology, very little have to do with nanotech).