The Problem of Patent Thickets in Convergent Technologies

Patent thickets are unintentionally dense webs of overlapping intellectual property rights owned by different companies that can retard progress. This article begins with a review of existing research on patent thickets, focusing in particular on the problem of patent thickets in nanotechnology, or nanothickets. After presenting visual evidence of the presence of nanothickets using a network analytic technique, it discusses potential organizational responses to patent thickets. It then reviews the existing research on patent pools and discusses pool formation in the shadow of antitrust enforcement. Based on recent research on patent pool formation, it examines the divergent fate of two recent pools and discusses the prospects for the future formation of nanotechnology patent pools, or nanopools.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72678/1/annals.1382.014.pd

Biodiversity inventories in high gear: DNA barcoding facilitates a rapid biotic survey of a temperate nature reserve

Comprehensive biotic surveys, or ‘all taxon biodiversity inventories’ (ATBI), have traditionally been limited in scale or scope due to the complications surrounding specimen sorting and species identification. To circumvent these issues, several ATBI projects have successfully integrated DNA barcoding into their identification procedures and witnessed acceleration in their surveys and subsequent increase in project scope and scale. The Biodiversity Institute of Ontario partnered with the rare Charitable Research Reserve and delegates of the 6th International Barcode of Life Conference to complete its own rapid, barcode-assisted ATBI of an established land trust in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada

Bark beetles and pinhole borers recently or newly introduced to France (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae and Platypodinae)

We present an annotated list of 11 Scolytinae and Platypodinae species newly or recently introduced to France. Four species are recorded for the first time as interceptions: Euplatypus hintzi (Schaufuss), Euplatypus parallelus (Fabricius), Xyleborus affinis Eichhoff and Xyleborus ferrugineus (Fabricius). Two are possibly naturalised: Xyleborus bispinatus Eichhoff and Cryphalus dilutus Eichhoff, while Cyclorhipidion distinguendum (Eggers) and Xyloterinus politus (Say) are confirmed as species newly established in Europe. Moreover, an unidentified species of Amasa Lea, collected previously in Spain, is recorded for the first time in France: Amasa sp. near truncata (Erichson). We point out that literature references to Amasa truncata as an invasive species in New Zealand and South America are incorrect, as the photographs of these non-native populations do not match the holotype of A. truncata. For each species we have updated its global distribution, detailed all French records, and summarized biology, ecology, host trees and potential risks as pests

Scale sensitivity of drivers of environmental change across Europe

The development of effective environmental management plans and policies requires a sound understanding of the driving forces involved in shaping and altering the structure and function of ecosystems. However, driving forces, especially anthropogenic ones, are defined and operate at multiple administrative levels, which do not always match ecological scales. This paper presents an innovative methodology of analysing drivers of change by developing a typology of scale sensitivity of drivers that classifies and describes the way they operate across multiple administrative levels. Scale sensitivity varies considerably among drivers, which can be classified into five broad categories depending on the response of ‘evenness’ and ‘intensity change’ when moving across administrative levels. Indirect drivers tend to show low scale sensitivity, whereas direct drivers show high scale sensitivity, as they operate in a non-linear way across the administrative scale. Thus policies addressing direct drivers of change, in particular, need to take scale into consideration during their formulation. Moreover, such policies must have a strong spatial focus, which can be achieved either by encouraging local–regional policy making or by introducing high flexibility in (inter)national policies to accommodate increased differentiation at lower administrative levels. High quality data is available for several drivers, however, the availability of consistent data at all levels for non-anthropogenic drivers is a major constraint to mapping and assessing their scale sensitivity. This lack of data may hinder effective policy making for environmental management, since it restricts the ability to fully account for scale sensitivity of natural drivers in policy design

Frequent detection of Streptococcus tigurinus in the human oral microbial flora by a specific 16S rRNA gene real-time TaqMan PCR

Background: Many bacteria causing systemic invasive infections originate from the oral cavity by entering the bloodstream. Recently, a novel pathogenic bacterium, Streptococcus tigurinus, was identified as causative agent of infective endocarditis, spondylodiscitis and meningitis. In this study, we sought to determine the prevalence of S. tigurinus in the human oral microbial flora and analyzed its association with periodontal disease or health. Results: We developed a diagnostic highly sensitive and specific real-time TaqMan PCR assay for detection of S. tigurinus in clinical samples, based on the 16S rRNA gene. We analyzed saliva samples and subgingival plaque samples of a periodontally healthy control group (n = 26) and a periodontitis group (n = 25). Overall, S. tigurinus was detected in 27 (53%) out of 51 patients. There is no significant difference of the frequency of S. tigurinus detection by RT-PCR in the saliva and dental plaque samples in the two groups: in the control group, 14 (54%) out of 26 individuals had S. tigurinus either in the saliva samples and/or in the plaque samples; and in the periodontitis group, 13 (52%) out of 25 patients had S. tigurinus in the mouth samples, respectively (P = 0.895). The consumption of nicotine was no determining factor. Conclusion: Although S. tigurinus was a frequently detected species of the human oral microbial flora, it was not associated with periodontal disease. Further investigations are required to determine whether S. tigurinus is a commensal or an opportunistic oral pathogen with a potential for development of invasive infections