Yale Bulletin and Calendar

November 2, 2007|Volume 36, Number 9

OCR chief testifies before Congress

Gene patents are not having a signficant impact on academic research, said E. Jonathan Soderstrom, managing director of Yale’s Office of Cooperative Research, in his testimony before Congress on Oct. 30.

Soderstrom spoke on the topic “Stifling or Stimulating — The Role of Gene Patents in Research and Genetic Testing” before the House Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property.

Some argue that granting patents in fields such as gene research may curb non-commercial biomedical research, discourage information-sharing among investigators, or encourage scientists to choose research projects based on commercial, rather than scientific, merit, noted Soderstrom.

“Yale has long taken a balanced approach to patenting, taking into account the nature of the invention, its relevance to research, and the extent to which patent protection would be necessary to give a commercial partner adequate incentive to develop the product completely,” he told the subcommittee. “We have taken a similar approach to licensing, especially by insisting upon the right to make the invention available to researchers at Yale and other academic institutions.

T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S

Alumnus makes major gift to new cancer care facility

New Yale ALERT system to allow instant communications . . .

Microsoft-Yale project will provide worldwide access to . . .

NIH honors chemist for innovative work on antibodies

NIH-funded study to explore how damaged cancer cells mend

Study: New brain cells listen before they talk

Study shows tiny RNAs play big role in controlling genes

Yale geologist honored for research on climate variations

New Yale opera group will debut with a performance of . . .

Yale singing groups come together for a concert to benefit United Way

‘The Future of Energy’ conference to assess issues of next 25 years

Ten Yale scientists are honored with election as fellows of the AAAS

Funding cuts have created a ‘crisis’ in the battle against cancer, says panel

OCR chief testifies before Congress

Memorial service for Kitty Lustman-Findling to be held on Nov. 10

Frederick Douglass Prize awarded for book exploring . . .

Autumn’s paintbrush

Yale Books in Brief

Campus Notes