Science. 1984 Jul 6;225(4657):18-23. doi: 10.1126/science.225.4657.18.
In view of the Supreme Court decision in Chakrabarty v. Diamond, Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, it is possible that plant varieties can be protected under three different U.S. statutes: the Plant Variety Protection Act, the Plant Patent Law, and the General Patent Law. The Plant Variety Protection Act protects varieties that are reproduced by seed, whereas the Plant Patent Law protects varieties reproduced asexually. Varieties, irrespective of how they are reproduced, could be patentable under the General Patent Statute. It is not clear whether parts of plants can be protected by grants under the Plant Patent Law or Plant Variety Protection Act and it is possible that they will be best protected under the General Patent Statute and by maintaining them as trade secrets. Only time will show whether the existing statutes are sufficient to provide both guidance and adequate protection or whether changes in the law will be required.
鉴于最高法院在 Chakrabarty v. Diamond，专利商标专员一案中的裁决，植物品种有可能受到美国三项不同法规的保护：《植物品种保护法》、《植物专利法》和《普通专利法》。《植物品种保护法》保护通过种子繁殖的品种，而《植物专利法》保护无性繁殖的品种。根据《普通专利法规》，无论以何种方式繁殖的品种都可以获得专利。目前尚不清楚《植物专利法》或《植物品种保护法》下的授权是否可以保护植物的部分，它们有可能在《普通专利法规》下以及通过将其作为商业秘密来得到最好的保护。只有时间才能证明现有的法规是否足以提供指导和充分的保护，或者是否需要修改法律。
