An interesting legal debate reaches the High Court in April
about whether a corporation can own part of a human gene. Genes are
the very formula of what makes us who we are. Genes hold the
inherited codes that determine our physical characteristics,
whether we are tall or short, thecolour of our skin, hair and eyes.
Scientists have discovered some genes also hold keys to whether
some of us are more liable to develop cancers.
A US medical research company has successfully applied for a
patent in Australia for a process that can isolate from the human
body a particular gene associated with cancer called BRCA1. The
test can show whether women have a mutated gene making them more
susceptible to developing breast and ovarian cancer. With such an
early warning, treatment can start earlier.
