EditorialComment <strong>Brain</strong> <strong>pains</strong> Editor: Mark Dugdale editor@ipprotheinternet.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6022 Reporter: Tammy Facey tammyfacey@blackknightmedialtd.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6017 Associate publisher: Carlos Northon carlosnorthon@ipprotheinternet.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6023 Account manager: Malkeet Mullay malkeetmullay@ipprolifesciences.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6026 Account manager: Kurtis Spencer Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6025 Publisher: Justin Lawson justinlawson@ipprotheinternet.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6028 Marketing executive: Amber Harty amberharty@blackknightmedialtd.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6020 Designer: John Savage johnsavage@ipprotheinternet.com Tel: +44 (0)203 750 6021 Office fax: +44 (0)20 8711 5985 Published by Black Knight Media Ltd Provident House, 6-20 Burrell Row Beckenham, BR3 1AT, UK Company reg: 0719464 Science and innovation are making incredible leaps forward, so much so that scientists from Ohio State University claim to have grown a nearly complete human brain—in a dish. The brain, which equals the maturity of a five-week old fetus, is the size of a pencil eraser. It has an identifiable structure and contains 99 percent of the genes present in the human fetal brain, according to its ‘growers’. The brain has a spinal cord, all of the major regions, multiple cell types, signaling circuitry, and even a retina. Rene Anand, professor of biological chemistry and pharmacology at Ohio State University, converted adult skin cells into pluripotent cells, which are immature stem cells that can be programmed to become any tissue in the body, to grow the brain. He said: “We’ve struggled for a long time trying to solve complex brain disease problems that cause tremendous pain and suffering. The power of this brain model bodes very well for human health because it gives us better and more relevant options to test and develop therapeutics other than rodents.” Scientists hope that the system will enable ethical, rapid and accurate testing of experimental drugs before the clinical trial stage, and advance studies of genetic and environmental causes of central nervous system disorders. Anand is yet to have his method peer reviewed because he has filed an invention disclosure with Ohio State University, so until it is scrutinised by other scientists, it’s unclear whether this is an actual breakthrough. But the possibilities are intriguing—in a decade that has brought us further expansion of the internet, the exploration of Pluto, driverless cars and solar-powered planes, we would be forgiven for thinking we’ve had our lot. But a scientist just grew a human brain—in a dish. Innovation is showing no signs of slowing down, and just like Anand’s method for growing a human brain, it needs protecting more than ever. With that in mind, we present this year’s IPPro The Annual. It covers intellectual property topics such as online brand protection, new gTLDs, and pharmaceutical research and development in detail, and provides a bird’s eye view of key jurisdictions around the world. As ever, we always welcome your feedback, so don’t hesitate to drop us a line. Mark Dugdale Editor Copyright © 2015 Black Knight Media Ltd. All rights reserved. 3
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