A breakthrough gene editing technology known as CRISPR is poised to deliver new medical therapies and agricultural and industrial advancements. Although recent reports of its success in the laboratory are promising, the larger challenge confronting CRISPR may be access to the underlying patent rights. To develop CRISPR technologies, commercial developers must fight or license their way through an intellectual property labyrinth that is the definition of inefficiency. The situation looks like an invitation to litigation or government intervention, either of which would put the technology’s vast potential at risk. There…
Read MoreOpinion: Amazing gene-editing technology needs a pass on patent minefields
