I want to focus in on one aspect of the groundbreaking genetic study which I wrote about below that illustrates the unlocked power of evolution, and why we cannot allow companies to ‘own’ human genes. It is the genes that resist disease that will help cure disease. But human genes cannot ever be property – never. You will see why in a moment. One of the interesting discoveries found in the study was regional variations in the numbers of copies of certain genes that helped fend off regional diseases:

There are just under 30,000 genes in the human genome, which consists of about 3 billion “letters” of the DNA code. The scientists found that more than 10 per cent of these genes appear to be multiplied in the 270 people who took part in the study. They do not know why some genes are copied and some are not. One gene, called CCL3L1, which is copied many times in people of African descent, appears to confer resistance to HIV. Another gene involved in making a blood protein is copied many times in people from south-east Asia and seems to help against malaria. Other research has shown that variation in the number of copies of some genes is involved in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

Take note of where the multiple copies of genes arose and their ability to ward off diseases that eminated from those regions. HIV is a human version of Simian IV which originated out of Africa. Malaria is common in the Asian regions near the oceans. Viruses like Malaria and HIV try survive by inflitrating human cells and taking over their DNA to make more viruses. The body reacts by creating antigens which attack the viruses and hold them to the cells lost in the initial attack.

As I alluded to in the previous post, multiple copies of genes mean a higher production rate of the proteins these genes are encoded to create. It is like having one assembly line verses muliple lines – it is all about productivity. Key to stopping an infection is the ability to produce enough defensive proteins to take out all the invading offensive virus agents. Since the body only reacts and starts building defenders until it is infected (so it can build the perfect defender), the ability to ramp up production is critical to winning the early stages of the battle.

The fact that people from regions where these diseases eminated have stronger defenses is a common indicator of evolution. As long as these genes are coming from adults no company can ‘own’ these cures. The one aspect of ESCR that may be crumbling is the idea that embryos, not yet being considered a human being, mean companies might make try to lay claim to the human genes in this legal limbo. I have always had my suspicions ESCR was more about money than anything else. But what this study shows is we will find that it is not a gene, but the number of copies of that gene, that will define who fights off a disease and who doesn’t. This would be a great tool in fighting illnesses. We might find a way to inject or graft cells that provide the necessary production capacity to lift the body’s production level to win the initial battles. But we do not want to have the winning genes ‘owned’ by any one corporation. The method of enhancing the body’s defenses can be pattented, but not the genes themselves. Congress needs to act now to grab this issue before it gets out of reach.