COVID-19 Pandemic: IP Issues & Challenges
By P. Kandiah While the COVID-19 pandemic enrages the world, there are frantic efforts to produce effective and safe vaccines, to invent covid detection methods and kits, and to find cures for the potentially fatal sickness around the world.
Let’s make functional foods fully functioning!
By Tharishini Manalan First you look at it, next you smell it and then you take a bite of it. For centuries, consumers have picked their food based on how good the food looks, smells and tastes. In recent times, in addition to these criteria, consumers have become more and more concerned about their own […]
COVID-19: The pandemic affecting the IP world (and basically everything else)
by Hoh Jerick Where hope was once the prevalent state of mind when a new year rolled around, this year that notion was swiftly replaced in the hearts and minds of everyone around the world by worry and fear, as the world was introduced to the Coronavirus, now officially known as COVID-19. With no end […]
Patenting Biotechnology Inventions
By P. Kandiah & Sharrmila Palanyandy In recent years, research and development in biotechnology field, especially in medicine and agricultural biotechnology is emerging rapidly. Researchers are encouraged to patent their inventions in order to commercialise their inventions and enjoy the benefits obtained thereafter. Mostly, biotechnology inventions are associated with materials present in nature which require […]
[The Petri Dish] Patenting Biotech Inventions
RNAi and Related Patentability Issues
By P. Kandiah & Sharrmila Palanyandy RNA interference (RNAi) is an evolutionally highly conserved process of post-transcriptional gene silencing (PTGs) by which double-stranded RNA (ds RNA) causes sequence-specific degradation of mRNA sequences. RNAi is a biological process in which RNA molecules inhibit gene expression, typically by causing the destruction of specific mRNA molecules. RNAi technology […]
[The Petri Dish] A billion-dollar Question
Genetic diseases and disorders which are caused by faulty genes in cells are debilitating and worsen the quality of life of a patient. But what if you could return the faulty genes to normalcy as easily as fixing your profile picture with Photoshop? Or even create a designer baby with desired features? A gene-editing tool […]
What does the TPPA have in store for patents?
By P. Kandiah At long last, the final draft of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) has been officially published, with Chapter 18 of the draft dealing with Intellectual Property (IP) Rights. This article will examine the provisions relating to patents, though the chapter also deals with other IP Rights such as Trademark, Industrial Design, Copyright, […]
Patents for New Plant Varieties in Europe?
By P. Kandiah & Samini Thiruchelvam A common dilemma amongst plant breeders is how to protect their new plant variety. In general, there are two ways to do this – by patent or by plant variety protection. New varieties of plants can be created by genetic engineering. Can such new varieties be protected by patents? […]
Made in Malaysia
By Ilangkumanan Kashaban “Merdeka!” rang the voice of freedom as the father of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman declared Malaysia’s independence on 31st August 1957. It has been 58 years of independence since, and every year Merdeka Day is awaited by the nation to cherish moments of togetherness regardless of race, ethnicity and culture. Today, the […]