The U.S. Supreme Court has decided that genes are no longer subject to US patent protection unless they have been chemically modified. The editorial team spoke to Dr. Franz-Josef Zimmer about further consequences of the judgment.

Zimmer warns that, following this decision, other natural substances, such as proteins, antibodies or micro-organisms, will likewise be excepted from patent protection if they are merely isolated from nature, but remain unchanged. For companies operating globally the United States’ unique path means a lot of additional expenditure, says Zimmer.