Patent Attorney, Dehns , London , UK
Expert Opin Ther Pat. 2013 Nov;23(11):1395-8. doi: 10.1517/13543776.2013.845170. Epub 2013 Oct 1.
Cells derived from human embryonic stem cells have great therapeutic potential. Patents are key to allowing companies that develop methods of generating such cells to recuperate their investment. However, in Europe, inventions relating to the use of human embryos for commercial purposes are excluded from patentability on moral grounds. The scope of this morality exclusion was recently tested before Germany's highest court and before the European Patent Office (EPO), with diverging results. The decision by the EPO's Opposition Division to revoke EP1040185 relating to neural precursors and methods for their generation has received a mixed reception. The decision has very recently been appealed, and the outcome of this Appeal should provide more definitive guidance on the scope of the morality exclusion.
人胚胎干细胞衍生的细胞具有巨大的治疗潜力。专利是允许开发此类细胞生成方法的公司收回投资的关键。然而，在欧洲，出于道德原因，与将人类胚胎用于商业目的有关的发明被排除在可专利性之外。最近，德国最高法院和欧洲专利局（EPO）对这种道德豁免的范围进行了测试，结果不一。EPO 异议部门决定撤销与神经前体细胞及其生成方法有关的 EP1040185 专利，这一决定引起了不同的反响。该决定最近已被上诉，该上诉的结果应该为道德豁免范围提供更明确的指导。
