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November 11, 2003
NYT Falls For 'Unpatentable' Myth
Instapundit points to a great article written by Derek Lowe on his outstanding Drug Discovery blog. The article 'fisks' (refutes) a New York Times Editorial that perpetuates myths that pharmaceutical companies can't make money from naturally occuring chemicals. In this case he's referring to the so-called 'synthetic HDL' which showed in one study the ability to reduce clogging of the arteries.
This myth keeps getting pushed by con-artists and snake-oil salesmen pitching scams such as "Live Shark Cell Therapy". It is also pushed by various organizations that have a beef with pharmaceutical companies. I highly recommend you read Derek's article. Here are some exerpts:
"How, by your reasoning, did Eli Lilly ever realize any profit from insulin? It's just another "normal body protein" whose medical use was already known, after all. How did Genentech ever make any money from human growth hormone?"
"Patents are issued for many kinds of inventions. Chemical matter (such as the protein itself) is patentable, as are new or improved methods of producing such materials, as well as new uses for them. A good method for economical large-scale production of Apo-A1 would be a very lucrative patent indeed."
He finishes with:
"Well, speaking as a member of the vaunted American research establishment, I find it irritating to be harangued by the New York Times about a subject you've clearly made little attempt to understand. Spend an hour reading the medical literature before you load up the cannons again - it'll be worth it, trust me."
Posted by Dave at November 11, 2003 09:57 PM
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