Scientist claims ownership over synthetic life forms

Tuesday, November 20, 2007 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer
Tags: synthetic life, intellectual property, health news

(NewsTarget) Craig Venter, the scientist who unsuccessfully attempted to map the human genome for profit, has applied for the first ever patent on a human-made life form. Venter has submitted his application at more than 100 national patent offices.

In fact, the J. Craig Venter Institute in Rockville, Maryland has said it will apply for patents around the world for a species that it calls Mycoplasma laboratorium. The institute claims to have created bacteria from artificially synthesized DNA, and wants exclusive ownership over not only the particular DNA sequence used, but also the entire "free-living organism that can grow and replicate."

Venter claims that the artificial life form is designed to synthesize hydrogen or ethanol for use as industrial fuel, and that future synthetic organisms could help absorb carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases. But in spite of the purported environmental motivation, many are alarmed by the attempt to synthesize and patent life.

"Venter and his colleagues have breached a societal boundary, and the public hasn't even had a chance to debate the far-reaching social, ethical and environmental implications of synthetic life," said Pat Mooney of the ETC Group.

In addition to patenting the bacteria and its genome, the Venter Institute has requested a monopoly on any synthetic organism that, like M. laboratorium (nicknamed "Synthia"), has had a certain number of "non-essential" DNA sequences removed. According to the ETC Group, "Synthia is [also] being patented for what it is not."

"These monopoly claims signal the start of a high-stakes commercial race to synthesize and privatize ... life forms," said Jim Thomas of the ETC Group. The ETC Group has announced its plans to challenge the Venter Institute's patent claim.

Patent experts consulted by the ETC Group believe that M. laboratorium had not been fully synthesized at the time that the institute applied for the patent. When asked more recently if the synthetic bacterium was self-sustaining in a laboratory environment, Venter replied, "We are getting close."