Golden Rice: A Case Study in Intellectual Property Management and International Capacity Building

The authors examine the management of risks associated with intellectual property linked to agri-biotech products, with emphasis on the international movement of agri-biotech intellectual property from industrialized to developing nations

Golden Rice: A Case Study in Intellectual Property Management and International Capacity Building

In order for agricultural biotechnology (agri-biotech) to play a larger role in the development of sustainable agricultural systems, intellectual property (IP) rights management must be addressed. These issues are not limited to developing countries. With increased globalization, the management of agri-biotech IP rights affects both developing and industrialized countries. In industrialized countries, for example, IP rights risk management entails protection of inventions via strong patent portfolios. For developing countries, IP rights risk management includes the acquisition of rights requisite for the use of inventions essential to the basic welfare of the population. Strategies are needed to bridge these disparate IP management paradigms to facilitate the successful transfer of the agri-biotech from an industrialized country source to a developing country recipient. This paper examines IP management linked to agri-biotech products. Further, this paper examines Golden Rice, a genetically engineered rice strain that accumulates beta-carotene (i.e., pro-vitamin A) in the endosperm tissue of grain, as a case study for IP management, with emphasis on the international movement of agri-biotech from industrialized to developing countries. Topics discussed include: the application of agri-biotech to international development; the challenge of transferring this technology from industrialized to developing countries; a method for evaluating the IP constraints impinging on the deployment of Golden Rice; industrialized/developing country perspectives vis-a-vis IP rights management; six shorter-term options for the management of IP connected to Golden Rice; and a longer-term proposed path to sustainable transfers of agri-biotech products

The Intellectual and Technical Property Components of pro-Vitamin A Rice (GoldenRiceTM): A Preliminary Freedom-To-Operate Review

Rice is a staple food for millions of people, predominantly in Asia, but lacks essential nutritional components such as Vitamin A. This is very important for over 180 million children and women of child bearing age who suffer from Vitamin A deficiency in Asia alone. For this reason, an improvement was made under an effort led by Profs. Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyer by inserting several genes into rice to produce an improved product called GoldenRice. Because GoldenRice has the potential to be easily integrated into the farming systems of the world\u27s poorer regions, the advent of GoldenRice promises to go a long way towards solving Asia\u27s Vitamin A deficiency problem in an effective, inexpensive, and sustainable way. As a result of the increasing complexity of the intellectual property (IP) framework under which the international agricultural development community operates, the Rockefeller Foundation funded an ISAAA project to conduct a selective Freedom-To-Operate (FTO) analysis of GoldenRice with the objectives of reviewing the IP and Technical Property (TP; or tangible property) components associated with GoldenRice; providing institutions interested in distributing GoldenRice with the information needed to develop strategic options for handling the proprietary science embedded in the product; and developing possible alternative strategies on how the IP/TP constraints could be managed effectively. Any FTO opinion is a risk management opinion and its results vary on a country-by-country basis. It is a dynamic opinion; never a definitive answer. Hence the present document serves as an analytical framework that can serve as the basis of a legal FTO review

AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF COCA ERADICATION POLICY IN COLOMBIA

We estimate an econometric model of coca production in Colombia. Our results indicate that coca eradication is an ineffective means of supply control as farmers compensate by cultivating the crop more extensively. The evidence further suggests that incentives to produce legal substitute crops may have greater supply-reducing potential than eradication.Political Economy,

Key Technologies, Systems, and Infrastructure Enabling the Commercialization and Human Settlement of the Moon and Cislunar Space

Over 50 years have passed since 2001: A Space Odyssey debuted in April 1968. In the film, Dr. Heywood Floydflies to a large artificial gravity space station orbiting Earth aboard a commercial space plane. He then embarks on acommuter flight to the Moon arriving there 25 hours later. Today, in this the 50th anniversary year of the Apollo 11lunar landing, the images portrayed in 2001 still remain well beyond our capabilities. This paper examines keytechnologies and systems (e.g., in-situ resource utilization, fission power, advanced chemical and nuclearpropulsion), and supporting orbital infrastructure (providing a propellant and cargo transfer function), that could bedeveloped by NASA and industry over the next 30 years allowing the operational capabilities presented in 2001 to beachieved, albeit on a more spartan scale. Lunar-derived propellants (LDPs) will be essential to developing a reusablelunar transportation system that can allow initial outposts to evolve into settlements supporting a variety ofcommercial activities. Deposits of icy regolith discovered at the lunar poles can supply the feedstock material neededto produce liquid oxygen (LO2) and hydrogen (LH2) propellants. On the lunar nearside, near the equator, iron oxiderichvolcanic glass beads from vast pyroclastic deposits, together with mare regolith, can provide the feedstockmaterials to produce lunar-derived LO2 plus other important solar wind implanted (SWI) volatiles, including H2and helium-3. Megawatt-class fission power systems will be essential for providing continuous "24/7" power toprocessing plants, human settlements and commercial enterprises that develop on the Moon and in orbit. Reusablelunar landing vehicles will provide cargo and passenger "orbit-to-surface" access and will also transport LDP to Space Transportation Nodes (STNs) located in lunar polar (LPO) and equatorial orbits (LLO). Reusable space-based,lunar transfer vehicles (LTVs), operating between STNs in low Earth orbit, LLO, and LPO, and able to refuel with LDPs, offer unique mission capabilities including short transit time crewed cargo transports. Even commuter flights similar to that portrayed in 2001 appear possible, allowing 1-way trip times to and from the Moon as short as 24hours. The performance of LTVs using both RL10B-2 chemical rockets, and a variant of the nuclear thermal rocket(NTR), the LO2-Augmented NTR (LANTR), are examined and compared. If only 1% of the LDP obtained from icyregolith, volcanic glass, and SWI volatile deposits were available for use in lunar orbit, such a supply could support routine commuter flights to the Moon for many thousands of years. This paper provides a look ahead at what might be possible in the not too distant future, quantifies the operational characteristics of key in-space and surface technologies and systems, and provides conceptual designs for the various architectural elements discussed

Commercial and Human Settlement of the Moon and Cislunar Space A Look Ahead at the Possibilities over the Next 50 Years

Over 50 years have passed since the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey debuted in April 1968. In the film, Dr. Heywood Floyd flies to a large artificial gravity space station orbiting Earth aboard a commercial space plane. He then embarks on a commuter flight to the Moon arriving there 25 hours later. Today, on the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, the images portrayed in 2001 still remain well beyond our capabilities. This paper examines key technologies and systems (in-situ resource utilization, fission power, advanced chemical and nuclear propulsion), and orbiting infrastructure elements (providing a propellant depot and cargo transfer function), that could be developed by NASA and the private sector in future decades allowing the operational capabilities presented in 2001 to be achieved, albeit on a more spartan scale. Lunar-derived propellants (LDPs) will be essential to reducing the launch mass requirements from Earth and developing a reusable lunar transportation system (LTS) that can allow initial outposts to evolve into settlements supporting a variety of commercial activities like in-situ propellant production. Deposits of icy regolith found within permanently shadowed craters at the lunar poles can supply the feedstock material to produce liquid oxygen (LO2) and hydrogen (LH2) propellant needed by surface-based lunar landing vehicles (LLVs) using chemical rocket engines. Along the Moons nearside equatorial corridor, iron oxide-rich volcanic glass beads from vast pyroclastic deposits, together with mare regolith, can provide the materials to produce lunar-derived LO2 plus other important solar wind implanted (SWI) volatiles, including H2 and helium-3. Megawatt-class fission power systems will be essential for providing continuous 24/7 power to processing plants, evolving human settlements, and other commercial activities that develop on the Moon and in orbit. Reusable LLVs will provide cargo and passenger orbit-to-surface access and will also be used to transport LDP to Space Transportation Nodes (STNs) located in lunar polar (LPO) and equatorial orbits (LLO). Spaced-based, reusable lunar transfer vehicles (LTVs), operating between STNs in low Earth orbit (LEO), LLO, and LPO, and able to refuel with LDPs, can offer unique mission capabilities including short transit time crewed cargo transports. Even a commuter shuttle service similar to that portrayed in 2001 appears possible, allowing 1-way trip times to and from the Moon as short as 24 hours. The performance of LTVs using both RL10B-2 chemical rockets, and a variant of the nuclear thermal rocket (NTR), the LO2-Augmented NTR (LANTR), are examined and compared. The bipropellant LANTR engine utilizes its divergent nozzle section as an afterburner into which oxygen is injected and supersonically combusted with reactor-heated hydrogen emerging from the engines sonic throat. If only 1% of the LDP obtained from icy regolith, volcanic glass, and SWI volatile deposits were available for use in lunar orbit, such a supply could support routine commuter flights to the Moon for many thousands of years! This paper provides a look ahead at what might be possible in the not too distant future, quantifies the operational characteristics of key in-space and surface technologies and systems, and provides conceptual designs for the various architectural elements discussed

Key Technologies, Systems, and Infrastructure Enabling the Commercialization and Human Settlement of the Moon and Cislunar Space

Over 50 years have passed since 2001: A Space Odyssey debuted in April 1968. In the film, Dr. Heywood Floydflies to a large artificial gravity space station orbiting Earth aboard a commercial space plane. He then embarks on acommuter flight to the Moon arriving there 25 hours later. Today, in this the 50th anniversary year of the Apollo 11lunar landing, the images portrayed in 2001 still remain well beyond our capabilities. This paper examines keytechnologies and systems (e.g., in-situ resource utilization, fission power, advanced chemical and nuclearpropulsion), and supporting orbital infrastructure (providing a propellant and cargo transfer function), that could bedeveloped by NASA and industry over the next 30 years allowing the operational capabilities presented in 2001 to beachieved, albeit on a more spartan scale. Lunar-derived propellants (LDPs) will be essential to developing a reusablelunar transportation system that can allow initial outposts to evolve into settlements supporting a variety ofcommercial activities. Deposits of icy regolith discovered at the lunar poles can supply the feedstock material neededto produce liquid oxygen (LO2) and hydrogen (LH2) propellants. On the lunar nearside, near the equator, iron oxiderichvolcanic glass beads from vast pyroclastic deposits, together with mare regolith, can provide the feedstockmaterials to produce lunar-derived LO2 plus other important solar wind implanted (SWI) volatiles, including H2and helium-3. Megawatt-class fission power systems will be essential for providing continuous "24/7" power toprocessing plants, human settlements and commercial enterprises that develop on the Moon and in orbit. Reusablelunar landing vehicles will provide cargo and passenger "orbit-to-surface" access and will also transport LDP toSpace Transportation Nodes (STNs) located in lunar polar (LPO) and equatorial orbits (LLO). Reusable space-based,lunar transfer vehicles (LTVs), operating between STNs in low Earth orbit, LLO, and LPO, and able to refuel withLDPs, offer unique mission capabilities including short transit time crewed cargo transports. Even commuter flightssimilar to that portrayed in 2001 appear possible, allowing 1-way trip times to and from the Moon as short as 24hours. The performance of LTVs using both RL10B-2 chemical rockets, and a variant of the nuclear thermal rocket(NTR), the LO2-Augmented NTR (LANTR), are examined and compared. If only 1% of the LDP obtained from icyregolith, volcanic glass, and SWI volatile deposits were available for use in lunar orbit, such a supply could supportroutine commuter flights to the Moon for many thousands of years. This paper provides a look ahead at what mightbe possible in the not too distant future, quantifies the operational characteristics of key in-space and surfacetechnologies and systems, and provides conceptual designs for the various architectural elements discussed

Spatial Variation in Fish Density at Three Petroleum Platforms as Measured with Dual-Beam Hydroacoustics

Despite the number and ubiquitous placement of petroleum platforms in the northern Gulf of Mexico, little information exists on associated fisheries resources due to the difficulties of sampling these sites with traditional fish census methods. From 1994 to 1996 dual-beam hydroacoustics were employed on quarterly research trips to measure the density and in situ target strengths of fishes associated with petroleum platforms in 20, 60, and 219 m of water. Density varied significantly with platform, distance from the platform, depth, and platform side. Platforms on the continental shelf had a near-field area of influence of approximately 18 m, whereas the near-field are of influence for the site on the continental slope was 10 m, although the relationship was not as well defined as the other sites. Average estimated abundance over the study period was 26,347 at the 60-m site, 13,444 at the 20-m site and 11,224 at the 219-m site. Fishes were distributed throughout the water column at the sites on the continental shelf, whereas on the continental slope (water depth 219m), over 88% of the fishes were found in the upper 60 m of the site

Patent Landscape of Influenza A Virus Prophylactic Vaccines and Related Technologies

Executive Summary: This report focuses on patent landscape analysis of technologies related to prophylactic vaccines targeting pandemic strains of influenza. These technologies include methods of formulating vaccine, methods of producing of viruses or viral subunits, the composition of complete vaccines, and other technologies that have the potential to aid in a global response to this pathogen. The purpose of this patent landscape study was to search, identify, and categorize patent documents that are relevant to the development of vaccines that can efficiently promote the development of protective immunity against pandemic influenza virus strains. The search strategy used keywords which the team felt would be general enough to capture (or “recall”) the majority of patent documents which were directed toward vaccines against influenza A virus. After extensive searching of patent literature databases, approximately 33,500 publications were identified and collapsed to about 3,800 INPADOC families. Relevant documents, almost half of the total, were then identified and sorted into the major categories of vaccine compositions (about 570 families), technologies which support the development of vaccines (about 750 families), and general platform technologies that could be useful but are not specific to the problems presented by pandemic influenza strains (about 560 families). The first two categories, vaccines and supporting technologies, were further divided into particular subcategories to allow an interested reader to rapidly select documents relevant to the particular technology in which he or she is focused. This sorting process increased the precision of the result set. The two major categories (vaccines and supporting technologies) were subjected to a range of analytics in order to extract as much information as possible from the dataset. First, patent landscape maps were generated to assess the accuracy of the sorting procedure and to reveal the relationships between the various technologies that are involved in creating an effective vaccine. Then, filings trends are analyzed for the datasets. The country of origin for the technologies was determined, and the range of distribution to other jurisdictions was assessed. Filings were also analyzed by year, by assignee, and by inventor. Finally, the various patent classification systems were mapped to find which particular classes tend to hold influenza vaccine-related technologies. Besides the keywords developed during the searches and the landscape map generation, the classifications represent an alternate way for further researchers to identify emerging influenza technologies. The analysis included creation of a map of keywords, as shown above, describing the relationship of the various technologies involved in the development of prophylactic influenza A vaccines. The map has regions corresponding to live attenuated virus vaccines, subunit vaccines composed of split viruses or isolated viral polypeptides, and plasmids used in DNA vaccines. Important technologies listed on the map include the use of reverse genetics to create reassortant viruses, the growth of viruses in modified cell lines as opposed to the traditional methods using eggs, the production of recombinant viral antigens in various host cells, and the use of genetically-modified plants to produce virus-like particles. Another major finding was that the number of patent documents related to influenza being published has been steadily increasing in the last decade, as shown in the figure below. Until the mid-1990s, there were only a few influenza patent documents being published each year. The number of publications increased noticeably when TRIPS took effect, resulting in publication of patent applications. However, since 2006 the number of vaccine publications has exploded. In each of 2011 and 2012, about 100 references disclosing influenza vaccine technologies were published. Thus, interest in developing new and more efficacious influenza vaccines has been growing in recent years. This interest is probably being driven by recent influenza outbreaks, such as the H5N1 (bird flu) epidemic that began in the late 1990s and the 2009 H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic. The origins of the vaccine-related inventions were also analyzed. The team determined the country in which the priority application was filed, which was taken as an indication of the country where the invention was made or where the inventors intended to practice the invention. By far, most of the relevant families originated with patent applications filed in the United States. Other prominent priority countries were the China and United Kingdom, followed by Japan, Russia, and South Korea. France was a significant priority country only for supporting technologies, not for vaccines. Top assignees for these families were mostly large pharmaceutical companies, with the majority of patent families coming from Novartis, followed by GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, U.S. Merck (Merck, Sharpe, & Dohme), Sanofi, and AstraZeneca. Governmental and nonprofit institutes in China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States also are contributing heavily to influenza vaccine research. Lastly, the jurisdictions were inventors have sought protection for their vaccine technologies were determined, and the number of patent families filing in a given country is plotted on the world map shown on page seven. The United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and China have the highest level of filings, followed by Germany, Brazil, India, Mexico and New Zealand. However, although there are a significant number of filings in Brazil, the remainder of Central and South America has only sparse filings. Of concern, with the exception of South Africa, few other African nations have a significant number of filings. In summary, the goal of this report is to provide a knowledge resource for making informed policy decisions and for creating strategic plans concerning the assembly of efficacious vaccines against a rapidly-spreading, highly virulent influenza strain. The team has defined the current state of the art of technologies involved in the manufacture of influenza vaccines, and the important assignees, inventors, and countries have been identified. This document should reveal both the strengths and weaknesses of the current level of preparedness for responding to an emerging pandemic influenza strain. The effects of H5N1 and H1N1 epidemics have been felt across the globe in the last decade, and future epidemics are very probable in the near future, so preparations are necessary to meet this global health threat

Economic Impact of Wildlife-Associated Recreation Expenditures in the Southeast United States: A General Equilibrium Analysis

The economic impact of wildlife-associated recreation in the Southeast United States was evaluated using a general equilibrium model. Exogenous demand shocks to the regional economy were based on estimates of expenditures by wildlife recreationists on hunting, fishing, and wildlife watching activities. Counterfactual simulations were carried out, making alternative assumptions about labor and capital mobility and their supply. Without wildlife-associated recreation expenditures, regional employment would have been smaller by up to 783 thousand jobs, and value added would have been $22 to$48 billion less. These findings underscore the significance of regional factor market conditions in economic impact and general equilibrium analysis.general equilibrium modeling, input-output analysis, regional economic impact, wildlife-associated recreation activities, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, R13, R15, Q26,