Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
basedonorganismscollected inareaswithinnationaljurisdiction,andthetrendinthenum-
ber of such patents is that of steady growth. Source organisms including most of the marine
taxa, including microorganisms from deep-sea ecosystems such as hydrothermal vents, and
the related patents (which have been filed both by entities from developed as well as some
technologically more advanced developing countries) are in some cases based on samples
collected in marine areas beyond national jurisdiction in a wide range of geographical loc-
ations. These patents are still few in number but clearly indicate an interest in the commer-
cial potential of deep-sea genetic resources.
There is a lack of information and sometimes also of transparency about the source of
the samples (including whether they originate from areas within or beyond national juris-
diction), disclosure of information related to the development of the product in question,
and how many patents have resulted in related commercial applications. Most of the tech-
nology (macro and laboratory) needed to access the deep-sea environment and to study the
properties of the organisms collected is sophisticated and expensive and therefore tends to
belong to a very limited number of countries. Increasingly cheap identification methods for
marine genetic resources and practices in open science and the digitization of ensuing res-
ults have made information on genetic resources more accessible.
There is a need to consider the environmental impact of scientific research on marine
resources, including the need to discriminate between the impact of research and develop-
ment operations related to applications involving continuous harvesting, such as in the case
of krill extracts, and of operations involving limited samples such as in the case of micro-
bial resources from deep-sea ecosystems. Consideration should also be given also to the
vulnerability of sensitive and pristine habitats and species which are rare or which present
a limited distribution and, as described in
Chapter 4
, are already experiencing adverse im-
pacts of climate change. Hence efforts to adopt a precautionary approach, such as the ap-
plication of voluntary codes of conduct, are needed and commendable, although stronger
protection measures could be necessary. These impacts may be reduced thanks to our in-
creased capacity to produce synthetic derivatives of the compounds identified and to rely
on microbial cultures. There is a need to identify, adopt, and promote practical measures
