There are various motives to generate knowledge, including to enrich existing knowledge, to find answers to present questions, to reduce risk, to utilise existing capabilities, to own the generated knowledge, to control diffusion of knowledge. Coming to mode of generation of knowledge in new biology, it has been observed from the exiting literature from different countries where Biotechnology has been well developed and put to commercial use, that it is done by setting up agenda for research by the interested parties with commercializability as a priority, create tools and mechanisms to establish ownership and control diffusion of knowledge. Generation of knowledge in biotechnology or new biology as one observes is mostly in the hands of big companies of highly advanced countries and their perceptions of need form the agenda for research. Natural resources - genetic resources in the form of microbes, plants, animals and certain human populations are utilised as basic materials for generating knowledge by manipulating the vulnerable and weak regulatory structures in the developing world. This pattern of generation of knowledge in Biotechnology has led to a situation where in the results of the research are mostly in the form of private proprietary material like patents, protocols and processes, products and much less public output in the form of publications.
Special contracts restrict free communication of the work and results for confidentiality reasons.
Wellcome in UK decided to end its TPA development agreement with Genetics Institute, citing the patent difficulties in prospect as one of the reasons. Mackenzie et al in their paper on gPatents Free Scientific Information and Changing International Regine in Intellectual Propery-the case of Elisa and Tandem h discuss the legal dispute between two US Biotechnology start up companies for a patent cover for a diagnostic kit using Monoclonal antibody, and illustrates the shift that has occurred in the boundaries between propritary information and free scientific information to the advantage of proprietary interests. Such transformation amounts to subtle but significant reallignment in the political economy of Science and Technology. Further the subject matter of publication in the late 80 fs are being shifted to form subject matter for patents. The type of products which could create problems are the devices which could be used for genetic screening in workplace to detect specific heritable diseases, genetic susceptibility to certain diseases, special vulnerabilities of environmental risks, genes having no effect on health directly but statistically associated with future health outcomes and life expectancy, genetic and biochemical factors behind mental performance and ability, prenatal diagnosis which helps to detect defects at fetus level enhances reproductive options for eat risk f couple.