» Articles » PMID: 35935539

Digitising Biopiracy? The Global Governance of Plant Genetic Resources in the Age of Digital Sequencing Information

Overview
Journal Third World Q
Date 2022 Aug 8
PMID 35935539
Authors
Affiliations
Soon will be listed here.
Abstract

Historical concerns over the exploitation of the Global South's genetic biodiversity framed the importance of creating global governance mechanisms to ensure fair access to and benefit-sharing of genetic resources worldwide. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (Plant Treaty) came into existence over the past three decades to redress the centuries of genetic exploitation of the Global South. Both of the treaties explicitly regulate and facilitate the exchange of physical genetic material. The recent emergence of relevant digital technologies, such as digital sequencing information (DSI), could make both treaties irrelevant. This article analyses the current state of the CBD and Plant Treaty as it relates to global agricultural research in light of DSI. I argue that DSI presents less of a threat to exacerbating historical gene flows than it does to the further displacement of public sector research by the private sector. The article then suggests looking at the lessons from open-source approaches to counter the privatisation of DSI and related gene flows. I draw on 11 key informant interviews with country negotiators involved with the CBD and Plant Treaty as well as a review of official reports from both frameworks.

Citing Articles

Proposals of indigenous peoples and local communities from Brazil for multilateral benefit-sharing from digital sequence information.

de Lima A, Juliao C, da Silva E, Dias A, de Jesus J, da Silva M Nat Commun. 2024; 15(1):8933.

PMID: 39414837 PMC: 11484924. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-53421-z.


Indigenous peoples and local communities as partners in the sequencing of global eukaryotic biodiversity.

Mc Cartney A, Head M, Tsosie K, Sterner B, Glass J, Paez S NPJ Biodivers. 2024; 2(1):8.

PMID: 38693997 PMC: 11062294. DOI: 10.1038/s44185-023-00013-7.


International agreements and the plant genetics research community: A guide to practice.

Marden E, Hamilton R, Halewood M, McCouch S Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023; 120(14):e2205773119.

PMID: 36972443 PMC: 10083609. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2205773119.

References
1.
Aubry S . The Future of Digital Sequence Information for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Front Plant Sci. 2019; 10:1046. PMC: 6728410. DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2019.01046. View

2.
Cochrane G, Karsch-Mizrachi I, Nakamura Y . The International Nucleotide Sequence Database Collaboration. Nucleic Acids Res. 2010; 39(Database issue):D15-8. PMC: 3013722. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkq1150. View

3.
Crick F . Central dogma of molecular biology. Nature. 1970; 227(5258):561-3. DOI: 10.1038/227561a0. View

4.
Laird S, Wynberg R, Rourke M, Humphries F, Muller M, Lawson C . Rethink the expansion of access and benefit sharing. Science. 2020; 367(6483):1200-1202. DOI: 10.1126/science.aba9609. View

5.
Scholz A, Freitag J, Lyal C, Sara R, Cepeda M, Cancio I . Multilateral benefit-sharing from digital sequence information will support both science and biodiversity conservation. Nat Commun. 2022; 13(1):1086. PMC: 8866420. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28594-0. View