Courage Noel, Calzavara Janice
Bereskin & Parr, Toronto, Ontario M5H 3Y2, Canada.
Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2015 May 18;5(9):a024489. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a024489.
Patents in the life sciences industries are a key form of intellectual property (IP), particularly for products such as brand-name drugs and medical devices. However, trade secrets can also be a useful tool for many types of innovations. In appropriate cases, trade secrets can offer long-term protection of IP for a lower financial cost than patenting. This type of protection must be approached with caution as there is little room for error when protecting a trade secret. Strong agreements and scrupulous security can help to protect the secret. Once a trade secret is disclosed to the public, it cannot be restored as the owner's property; however, if the information is kept from the public domain, the owner can have a property right of unlimited duration in the information. In some situations patents and trade secrets may be used cooperatively to protect innovation, particularly for manufacturing processes.
生命科学行业的专利是知识产权（IP）的一种关键形式，对于品牌药和医疗设备等产品而言尤为如此。然而，商业秘密对于许多类型的创新也可能是一种有用的工具。在适当的情况下，商业秘密能够以低于专利申请的财务成本为知识产权提供长期保护。这种保护方式必须谨慎对待，因为在保护商业秘密时几乎没有出错的余地。强有力的协议和严谨的安全措施有助于保护秘密。一旦商业秘密被公开披露，就不能再恢复为所有者的财产；然而，如果信息不被公开，所有者可以对该信息拥有无期限的财产权。在某些情况下，专利和商业秘密可以协同使用来保护创新，特别是在制造工艺方面。
