#211 Jorge Contreras on The Genome Defense

Our guest in this episode is Jorge Contreras, author of The Genome Defense. In this riveting, behind-the-scenes courtroom drama, a brilliant legal team battles corporate greed and government overreach for the fundamental right to control our genes.

We’re giving away 5 copies of The Genome Defense, so be sure to check out our social media accounts for the giveaway details. If you don’t win, you can get a copy here. When you buy a copy of the book, half of the proceeds are donated to FORCE, an organization that strives to improve the lives of individuals and families facing hereditary cancer. You can learn more about the book on Contreras’ website, genomedefense.org. 

Jorge Contreras (he/him) is the James T. Jensen Endowed Professor for Transactional Law and Director of the Program on Intellectual Property and Technology Law at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Human Genetics. His research focuses on intellectual property, technical standards and science policy, and he is one of the co-founders of the Open COVID Pledge, a framework for contributing intellectual property to the COVID-19 response. He is the editor or author of twelve books and more than 150 scholarly articles and book chapters. During his career he has served on the NIH Council of Councils and the National Advisory Council for Human Genome Research, and as Co-Chair of the National Conference of Lawyers and Scientists. His most recent book, The Genome Defense: Inside the Epic Legal Battle to Determine Who Owns Your DNA (Algonquin, 2021) describes the litigation that ended gene patenting in America. He is a graduate of Harvard Law School (JD) and Rice University (BSEE, BA). Learn more about Jorge here.

On This Episode We Discuss:

Why the ACLU and other groups felt so strongly that gene patents should be banned

Factors that lead to the ACLU choosing Myriad and specifically the BRCA related gene patents for the lawsuit

The role that public perception played in the AMP vs. Myriad case

The predicted impact of banning gene patents on the economy and public health

The main points that were argued in the AMP vs. Myriad case

cDNA and gDNA

How the ban of gene patents has impacted the biotech industry 

Legislation and current cases that we should be aware of that affect the field of genetics

We also asked listener questions on this episode, so tune in to see if we answered yours!

You can follow Jorge onTwitter and LinkedIn to stay up to date on his latest work!