Has Crispr’s patent battle run its course?

Concept illustration for an argument

Source: © Shutterstock

As the originators duke it out in court, their patents are becoming increasingly irrelevant

How many times have you had an argument with a sibling, spouse, friend or parent, and got so caught up in the quarrel that you forget what the original spat was about? By the time you’ve finished slinging escalating insults at each other in an effort to have the final say, the source of the dispute probably seems irrelevant.

The long-running legal wrangling over two patents to Crispr-Cas9 gene editing techniques is beginning to have this feeling to it.