The Human Genome Has Its Day in Court

PASADENA, Calif. — Should you patent your own genome? In the near future, this may not seem as far-fetched as it does now, although there are legal, medical and ethical issues to be considered. Experts in those fields will tackle these questions November 9 and 10 at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

The event is the third annual At the Crossroads conference sponsored by the Program for Law and Technology at the California Institute of Technology and Loyola Law School. It is free and open to the public, but advance registration is required.

"Law, Technology and the Human Genome," will include panel discussions on "Genetic Property, Privacy and Progress," from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on November 10 in Beckman Auditorium. Speakers will include Mark Rohrbaugh, National Institutes of Health; Leroy Hood, Institute for Systems Biology; Stephen Kunin, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; Dan Kevles, Yale University; and David Baltimore, Caltech president, among others.

Panel moderators include KNBC News legal reporter Manny Medrano, New York Times biotechnology reporter Andrew Pollack, and USC Law School professor Erwin Chemerinsky.

In addition, a mock trial on November 9 will be tried by Caltech and Loyola Law School students and heard by Judge Marilyn Hall Patel, the federal district judge who ordered music Web site Napster to shut down in July. The case, NuGenEra, Inc. v. Salvador Dolly deals with patent infringement on an individual human genome. It will take place from 2 to 5:30 p.m. in Ramo Auditorium.

The Program for Law and Technology is a joint academic venture between Caltech and Loyola Law School–Los Angeles, sponsored by Henry Yuen, a graduate of the two schools. Yuen is president and chief executive officer of Gemstar–TV Guide International, Inc.

"Virtually every discipline within law will be affected by these issues. Can the genetic blueprint of DNA molecules be reduced to ownership? We're going to explore these issues from a variety of angles," said Karl Manheim, law professor at Loyola Law School.

"The 'Law of the Genome' is unfolding before our eyes. As academics, we'd like to help assure that whatever emerges is the product of reasoned and informed discourse between scientists and lawmakers," said Ed McCaffery, visiting law professor at Caltech.

For details about the events, see the Law and Technology Web site at http://techlaw.lls.edu. To register, call (213) 736-1423 or (800) 871-0845. Registration can also be done on the Web site. MCLE credit is available.

Reporters should contact one of the following representatives in advance in order to attend or to arrange for an interview:

Jill Perry, Media Relations Director (626) 395-3226 jperry@caltech.edu

Donna DeDario, Media Relations Loyola Law School-Los Angeles (310) 207-3361 donna.dedario@carlterzianpr.com

Visit the Caltech media relations Web site: http://pr.caltech.edu/media