Table 1.
Patenting of different stem cell types within the EU (1hESC: human embryonic stem cells, 2hpSC: human parthenogenetic stem cells, 3hiPSC: human induced pluripotent stem cells)
| Stem cell type | Origin | Patenting (EU level) | Reasoning | Normative criterion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| hESC 1 | Human embryos (i.e. in vitro fertilized egg cells as well as via SCNT activated egg cells) | Prohibited (on the basis of the Biopatent Directive and its interpretations given by the ECJ 2011 and 2014) | Uses of human embryos for commercial and industrial purposes violate their human dignity | Totipotency, i.e. inherent capacity of developing into a human being (ECJ 2014) |
| hpSC 2 | Human parthenotes (i.e. via parthenogenesis activated egg cells) | Permitted (on the basis of the interpretation of the Biopatent Directive given by the ECJ 2014) | Human parthenotes are not human embryos and therefore do not have human dignity → First questionable assumption: Human parthenotes are not human embryos | No totipotency: restricted capacity of developing into a human being |
| hiPSC 3 | Human somatic cells | Not regulated | Neither human somatic cells nor hiPSC are human embryos and therefore do not have human dignity | No totipotency: multipotency (human somatic cells) resp. pluripotency (hiPSC) → Second questionable assumption: HiPSC are not totipotent |