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Article: Drug Companies, Gene Labs to Join Forces; Collaboration Aims to Probe Genetic Differences -- Without Proprietary Interests
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- April 15, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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Ten of the world's largest drug companies are joining forces with
five of the leading gene laboratories in a crash program to unravel
many of the tiny genetic differences that underlie the diversity of
the human race.
The unprecedented collaboration, to be announced this morning in
Chicago, is partly designed to ensure that upstart biotechnology
companies, including one in Rockville, don't patent discoveries about
important genetic differences and lock out competitors that want to
create drugs based on that information. The drug companies are
betting these genetic differences will become a fundamental resource
for 21st century medicine, and they want as many of them as possible
kept in the ...