L.A. TIMES Sunday, May 14, 2000 DNA Device's Heredity Scrutinized by U.S. Scientists insist they invented technique without federal funding, but paper trail suggests they relied on millions in grants. Inquiry will determine if there is need for payback. By PETER G. GOSSELIN and PAUL JACOBS, Times Staff Writers When the history of the just-dawning genetic revolution is finally written, a clunky-looking machine the size of a sidewalk trash can will play a starring role. The automated DNA sequencer is letting researchers quickly crack the biochemical code of life, an achievement that could one day turn incurable diseases into treatable ones. But the machine is at the vortex of a struggle over wealth, fame and, quite possibly, control of the genetic code itself. The sequencer's developers say they invented the device without a penny from the federal government, the usual source of funds for such endeavors. Their act of entrepreneurial wizardry, they say, entitles them to sweeping rights over their invention. But The Times has turned up a paper trail that suggests a quite different story: one in which the developers collected millions in federal funds and failed to provide the government with certain key rights, such as discounts on purchases of the sequencers. Federal officials are now investigating. The difference between these two versions of events could have a big financial impact on the inventors of the sequencer, the machine's manufacturer and the California Institute of Technology, where the device was developed. It could also affect the fortunes of investors who are wagering billions of dollars on claims made by the manufacturer, PE Corp., which has gained widespread recognition in both financial and scientific circles for its pioneering work. Most important of all, the dispute could influence who gains control of the human genetic blueprint and all the medical miracles that it is expected to generate: the public or a few drug and biotech companies. Among the documents examined by The Times: * A series of federal grants to Caltech scientists in the mid-1980s to devise and improve the machine, including a $2.5-million National Science Foundation grant specifically "to automate DNA sequencing." If the grants were used in inventing the device, the government would be due some rights to the results. The developers say they had already invented the machine when the federal money started to flow. * A 1988 licensing agreement in which Caltech gave nearly exclusive authority to use the sequencer technology to a company started by the inventors, something not commonly done at the time when federal funds were involved. PE subsequently purchased the firm and, according to one recent study, captured 92% of the U.S. market for sequencers. The agreement included provisions promising the government the very discounts the law says are due it when federal funds are used. * Letters and memos that show the machine's inventors bickered over its creation in ways that some experts say could jeopardize their government-issued patents. The government is studying whether to challenge the patents. Representatives for Caltech, PE and the researchers credited with the invention all said that no federal funds were used in developing the machine. They also denied there was anything improper about the 1988 licensing agreement and said there were no disagreements between the inventors that threaten their patents. They acknowledged that the developers may have slipped up by filing over-exuberant grant applications, but described any mistakes as innocent. "Based on everything we know at this time, we believe we handled the invention and patenting of the sequencer in an entirely proper manner," said Caltech provost Steven E. Koonin. for the whole story, see http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/updates/lat_dna000514.htm Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] & http://liberalarts.lmu.edu/~JDevine
