Where New Genes Come From
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Because they are conducive to genetic research, the "narrow" gene pools common to indigenous peoples, remote islanders, traditional religious communities, and other distinct populations are fast becoming a commodity (see "Iceland's Blond Ambition"). The following chart shows where corporate gene hunters—globe-trotting scientists who collect skin and blood samples for research—have been focusing their efforts. While gene hunters are obliged to obtain informed consent from their donors, they are not required to tell them that tissue donation could result in patented products. And donors are rarely offered a cut of the profits.
| Location | Company or Institution | Target Gene or Disease | |
| Argentina | Genset | Central nervous system disorders | |
| Brazil | Axys Pharmaceuticals and Mount Sinai Hospital (Toronto) | Asthma | |
| Canada | Mount Sinai Hospital et al. | Obesity and diabetes | |
| Chile | Axys | Asthma | |
| China | Genset | Common diseases | |
| China | Axys and Mount Sinai Hospital | Asthma | |
| Finland | Progenitor | Schizophrenia | |
| Gabon | Pasteur Institute | HIV | |
| Iceland | DeCode Genetics | Diabetes; alcoholism | |
| Israel | Genset | Cancer; bone and cardiovascular diseases; central nervous system disorders | |
| Italy | University of Milan | Low HDL (so-called good cholesterol) gene | |
| Micronesia | Rockefeller University | Obesity | |
| Pakistan | Columbia University | Baldness | |
| Papua New Guinea | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services | Patent on genetic material from a man infected with HTLV-1, an HIV-like virus (patent dropped in 1997) | |
| Solomon Islands | U.S. National Institutes of Health | Patent application on genetic material from two Solomon Islanders with HTLV-1 (dropped in 1996) | |
| Tibet | Case Western Reserve University | High-altitude gene | |
| Tristan da Cunha | Axys and Mount Sinai Hospital | Asthma | |
| United States (Mormon families in Utah) | Myriad Genetics | Breast cancer |
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