Who Develops Innovations in Medicine for the Poor? Trends in Patent Applications Related to Medicines for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Neglected Diseases

Banri Ito and Tatsufumi Yamagata

No 24, IDE Discussion Papers from Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO)

Abstract: Who invents medicines for the poor of the world? This question becomes very important where the WTO allows low income countries to be unbound by the TRIPS agreement.This agreement concerns medicines for infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. These diseases cause serious damage to low income countries. Under these circumstances, some scholars wonder if anyone will continue innovative activities related to treating these diseases.This paper sought to answer this question by collecting and analyzing patent data of medicines and vaccines for diseases using the database of the Japan Patent Office. Results indicate that private firms have led in innovation not only for global diseases such as HIV/AIDS but also diseases such as malaria that are spreading exclusively in low income countries.Innovation for the three infectious diseases is diverse among firms, and frequent patent applications by high-performing pharmaceutical firms appear prominent even after R&D expenditure, economies of scale, and economies of scope are taken into account.

Keywords: HIV/AIDS; Malaria; Tuberculosis; Neglected diseases; Patents; Medicine; Knowledge production; Diseases; Medical care; Developing countries; エイズ; マラリア; 結核; 特許; 疾病; 医療; 発展途上国 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I19 L65 O31 O34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005-04-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-hea, nep-ino, nep-ipr and nep-pr~
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Published in IDE Discussion Paper = IDE Discussion Paper, No. 24. 2005-04-01

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Related works:
Journal Article: WHO DEVELOPS INNOVATIONS IN MEDICINE FOR THE POOR? TRENDS IN PATENT APPLICATIONS RELATED TO MEDICINES FOR HIV/AIDS, TUBERCULOSIS, MALARIA, AND NEGLECTED DISEASES (2007)
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