National Post - Zamboni: No conflict in applying for MS patents

The Italian doctor behind a furiously debated theory of multiple sclerosis treatment applied for several patents to protect his discoveries long before they became widely known, and has worked closely with a company marketing an MS ultrasound machine built according to his specifications. [...]

“You would expect that if this was really being done in the public interest, that he would announce it. He would say, ‘Yes, I have these patents, I obtained them on purpose, in order to facilitate access,’ ” said Richard Gold, an intellectual property expert at the McGill University law school.

“The fact he hasn’t said anything and it was uncovered, it wasn’t him who uncovered it, would indicate it’s likely for profit, and one should question his motives in the same way one should question anyone’s motives who is both publishing research and commercializing a product.’’

[...] Medical scientists take out patents for a number of reasons, including simply to ensure that their discovery can one day be developed by a company and aid mankind, said Jonathan Kimmelman a bio-ethicist at McGill who specializes in ethics of health research. Accumulating patents can also bolster academic standing, he said. It’s wrong to believe, though, that only drug company ties influence researchers, he added.