Bibliograph

The genealogy of a gene, patents, HIV/AIDS, and race, Myles W. Jackson

Type

Label

The genealogy of a gene, patents, HIV/AIDS, and race, Myles W. Jackson

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references (pages 285-326) and index

Illustrations

mapsillustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

The genealogy of a gene

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

885474963

Responsibility statement

Myles W. Jackson

Series statement

Transformations: studies in the history of science and technology

Sub title

patents, HIV/AIDS, and race

Summary

In The Genealogy of a Gene, Myles Jackson uses the story of the CCR5 gene to investigate the interrelationships among science, technology, and society. Mapping the varied "genealogy" of CCR5 -- intellectual property, natural selection, Big and Small Pharma, human diversity studies, personalized medicine, ancestry studies, and race and genomics -- Jackson links a myriad of diverse topics. The history of CCR5 from the 1990s to the present offers a vivid illustration of how intellectual property law has changed the conduct and content of scientific knowledge, and the social, political, and ethical implications of such a transformation. The CCR5 gene began as a small sequence of DNA, became a patented product of a corporation, and then, when it was found to be an AIDS virus co-receptor with a key role in the immune system, it became part of the biomedical research world -- and a potential moneymaker for the pharmaceutical industry. When it was further discovered that a mutation of the gene found in certain populations conferred near-immunity to the AIDS virus, questions about race and genetics arose. Jackson describes these developments in the context of larger issues, including the rise of "biocapitalism," the patentability of products of nature, the difference between U.S. and European patenting approaches, and the relevance of race and ethnicity to medical research

Table Of Contents

The story of the CCR5 gene -- The CCR5 patent(s) -- Gene patenting and the product-of-nature doctrine -- The CCR5 patent and intellectual property law -- The European response to the CCR5 patent -- CCR5 and HIV/AIDS diagnostics and therapeutics -- Race, place, and pathogens -- Race, difference, and genes -- Epilogue: the end of an error?

Classification