A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan
Antarctic bioprospecting, namely the search for valuable genetic or chemical compounds in Antarctic nature, has been the subject of intense discussion within Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. In this discussion, based on the so-called "end-users view point," utilizing the patent data...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:86f4582b17c444c4b5fa73986cd4f38c 2023-05-15T13:55:26+02:00 A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan Akiho Shibata 2010-03-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 https://doaj.org/article/86f4582b17c444c4b5fa73986cd4f38c EN JA eng jpn National Institute of Polar Research http://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 https://doaj.org/toc/0085-7289 https://doaj.org/toc/2432-079X doi:10.15094/00009520 0085-7289 2432-079X https://doaj.org/article/86f4582b17c444c4b5fa73986cd4f38c Antarctic Record, Vol 54, Iss 1, Pp 1-10 (2010) Geography (General) G1-922 article 2010 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 2022-12-31T00:14:19Z Antarctic bioprospecting, namely the search for valuable genetic or chemical compounds in Antarctic nature, has been the subject of intense discussion within Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. In this discussion, based on the so-called "end-users view point," utilizing the patent database to see how much Antarctic biological material has been used in patents, Antarctic bioprospecting has been depicted as a lucrative commercial activity operated by big multinational companies. This paper, instead, proposes an "access view point" for Antarctic bioprospecting, by examining a recent Japanese case in which scientists participating in the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition in 2007 collected some sediment from Antarctic lakes near Syowa Station, isolated and cultured a particular fungus, and found the first evidence of the presence of antifreezing activity in oomycetes. In 2009, the scientists' affiliate institutions, including the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, applied for a patent on Antarctomyces psychrotrophicus Syw-1 and the antifreeze protein obtained from it. A detailed examination of this case demonstrates that the dichotomy of Antarctic bioprospecting into "commercial" and "scientific" does not reflect the reality of bioprospecting activities and, therefore, does not provide an appropriate ground for legal and policy discussion on Antarctic bioprospecting. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Antarctic Syowa Station |
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Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
language |
English Japanese |
topic |
Geography (General) G1-922 |
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Geography (General) G1-922 Akiho Shibata A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
topic_facet |
Geography (General) G1-922 |
description |
Antarctic bioprospecting, namely the search for valuable genetic or chemical compounds in Antarctic nature, has been the subject of intense discussion within Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. In this discussion, based on the so-called "end-users view point," utilizing the patent database to see how much Antarctic biological material has been used in patents, Antarctic bioprospecting has been depicted as a lucrative commercial activity operated by big multinational companies. This paper, instead, proposes an "access view point" for Antarctic bioprospecting, by examining a recent Japanese case in which scientists participating in the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition in 2007 collected some sediment from Antarctic lakes near Syowa Station, isolated and cultured a particular fungus, and found the first evidence of the presence of antifreezing activity in oomycetes. In 2009, the scientists' affiliate institutions, including the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, applied for a patent on Antarctomyces psychrotrophicus Syw-1 and the antifreeze protein obtained from it. A detailed examination of this case demonstrates that the dichotomy of Antarctic bioprospecting into "commercial" and "scientific" does not reflect the reality of bioprospecting activities and, therefore, does not provide an appropriate ground for legal and policy discussion on Antarctic bioprospecting. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Akiho Shibata |
author_facet |
Akiho Shibata |
author_sort |
Akiho Shibata |
title |
A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
title_short |
A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
title_full |
A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
title_fullStr |
A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
title_full_unstemmed |
A recent case of Antarctic bioprospecting from Japan |
title_sort |
recent case of antarctic bioprospecting from japan |
publisher |
National Institute of Polar Research |
publishDate |
2010 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 https://doaj.org/article/86f4582b17c444c4b5fa73986cd4f38c |
geographic |
Antarctic Syowa Station |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Syowa Station |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic |
op_source |
Antarctic Record, Vol 54, Iss 1, Pp 1-10 (2010) |
op_relation |
http://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 https://doaj.org/toc/0085-7289 https://doaj.org/toc/2432-079X doi:10.15094/00009520 0085-7289 2432-079X https://doaj.org/article/86f4582b17c444c4b5fa73986cd4f38c |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.15094/00009520 |
_version_ |
1766262054585368576 |