The patent application for a genome editing technology submitted by researchers from universities in China is considered as withdrawn by China's State Intellectual Property (IP) Office after the applicants failed to respond to a notice on time.
Han Chunyu of Hebei University of Science and Technology (HUST) and Shen Xiao of Zhejiang University applied for a patent to a new genetic modification, or genome editing, technology called NgAgo. However, the IP authority said that they have not replied to a notice, resulting in a halt in the application.
The office said that the researchers were aware of the withdrawn status of their patent application, and according to the Implementing Rules of the Patent Law, Han and Shen can submit a request to restore their application.
According to The Niche, NgAgo is a new genome editing technology which is different from the established technology in that it is based on DNA instead of RNA guides. The new tech utilizes the bacterial enzyme of Natronobacterium gregoryi Argonaute in replicating and editing DNA.
The result of the research was weighed to possibly break the foreign monopoly in genetic modification technology. It is also the first invention in this field to be created by a Chinese, HUST said.
The study by Han and Shen was published in the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology on May 2, 2016. Some audience regarded the findings as deserving of a Nobel Prize.
However, according to a Global Times report, scientists from China and abroad said that they could not reproduce the results released in July 2016 by Han's team.
Some researchers from prestigious organizations requested that the raw data of Han's findings be publicized.
