The patenting of genes, tissues and organisms must be allowed by EU law following a ruling of the European Court of Justice. A Green party MEP described it as a "shocking decision" that violated the right to human dignity.
The court dismissed a challenge by the Netherlands to the Directive on the Legal Protection of Biotechnological Inventions, which some began calling the "patenting of life directive".
It allows companies to take out patents on biotechnology inventions, whether derived from human, plant or animal sources. The court said the directive afforded "sufficient protection" to prevent the human body becoming a "patentable invention".
The directive has been the subject of a contentious 10-year battle. Its opponents claimed it would allow companies to take control of genes and DNA sequences, thus blocking off important medical research. Its backers said the companies needed patent rights to protect their investments in research.
The European Parliament rejected a version of the directive in 1995, but Strasbourg and the council adopted a new proposal in July 1998. The Netherlands, backed by Italy and Norway, asked the Court of Justice to decide on the issue, and it ruled in favour of the directive.
The court took the view that the directive framed patent law in stringent enough terms to ensure that the human body was "unavailable for patenting and inalienable and to safeguard human dignity," a statement from the court indicated.
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