3 
policy for recombinant DNA research inventions. Under the patent 
agreements, institutions are allowed to patent inventions developed 
under DHEW contracts or grants. A number of institutions have 
indicated interest in patenting certain recombinant DNA research 
inventions and the NIH is currently reviewing what modifications, 
if any, are necessary under the terms of the patent agreement to 
meet public concerns for safety in this research area. A decision 
on this matter should be forthcoming within the next month. 
In concluding the review of NIH activities. Dr. Fredrickson discussed 
recombinant DNA research activities abroad. He discussed briefly the 
recent guidelines developed in the United Kingdom by a scientific 
committee known as "The Williams Committee." The NIH and British 
guidelines conceptually are similar but Dr. Fredrickson noted that 
the U.K. guidelines rely formally on physical containment and their 
levels of physical containment differ somewhat from those of the 
NIH. To implement these guidelines, the Genetics Manipulation Advisory 
Group (GMAG) has been formed to review all recombinant DNA research 
protocols to ensure conformity with the standards set in the guidelines. 
The responsibility for enforcement of the safety standards will rest 
with the Health and Safety Commission that has responsibility in 
Britain for ensuring appropriate safety conditions in the work place. 
Dr. Fredrickson also reviewed activities in other western European 
countries. The European Science Foundation (ESF) and the European 
Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) are responsible for recombinant 
DNA research activities collectively in Europe. Each member nation 
has a representative that serves on the boards of these organizations 
and attempts are being made for a uniform policy to govern the conduct 
of this research. ESF has recently recommended that the British 
guidelines be adopted for Europe rather than the NIH at the present 
time. As Dr. Fredrickson noted, there are a number of important 
questions concerning implementation because there is discretion provided 
in the British guidelines for classifying experiments. The NIH is 
working closely to see where coordination is possible and a commonality 
of standards might be achieved. Finally, the NIH is working closely 
with Canada which recently has proposed guidelines that differ from 
the NIH and the U.K. to try to achieve a consensus on standards. And 
the NIH has been working with the World Health Organization and the 
International Council of Scientific Unions to reach agreement with 
the Communist countries as well. 
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