May/June 1998 Issue

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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From the desk of Mother Jones CEO, Monika Bauerlein...

Newsrooms can be funded in many ways. One of the most controversial (and volatile) ways is by a for-profit corporation or a billionaire owner. We see it across the headlines on a weekly basis: the claw backs in public media, the gutting of The Washington Post, the bending over backwards to appeal to Trump and his allies.

But not here.

When Mother Jones first started publishing 50 years ago, our founders made a critical decision: to be a reader-supported nonprofit. They knew that no corporate owner would be interested in a muckraking newsroom; they also knew that no muckraking newsroom would be interested in following the agenda of a corporate owner.

And so, we’ve been reader-funded for half a century. We rely on contributions from our readers—readers like you—whether it’s $50, or $15 a month, or whatever fits your budget. People give what they can, and every donation makes a difference for our newsroom, which has grown tremendously—in size and reach and renown—since its inception in 1976.

You may be wondering: What does it take to publish an investigation? And what does my donation actually fund? The answers are one and the same: It takes people, resources, and time. And that’s what your donation funds directly.

Every donation Mother Jones receives from readers fortifies our newsroom, whether we’re covering underreported scandals out of Washington, DC, or the most important news of the day. And right now, each donation will be doubled because of our $50,000 match. So when you make a donation—$5, $50, any amount—it’ll go twice as far.

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