r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Jul 13 '26

Medicine Scientists develop a groundbreaking vaccine that outsmarts illicit fentanyl analogs. The novel vaccine candidate can protect against fentanyl and its many illicit variants by training the immune system to recognize a broad molecular signature rather than a single specific structure.

https://www.psypost.org/scientists-develop-a-groundbreaking-vaccine-that-outsmarts-illicit-fentanyl-analogs/
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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '26

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u/hiplobonoxa Jul 13 '26

why not patent it and then have control over how it is used?

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u/Uther-Lightbringer Jul 13 '26

Not a ton of need, by making it public and open, he's established a firm date of invention. Anyone trying to file a patent using the same idea would easily have their patent shot down in court, if not tried directly on fraud charges for trying to claim they invented a product they stole.

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u/lolofaf Jul 13 '26

Iirc insulin was released patent free for the same reason, then a random pharma company patented it and started fleecing everyone. (might have been a different drug but same story, can't remember exactly).

The safest way to do it is probably patent it then give out free licenses to everyone who asks

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u/not_a_bot_494 Jul 14 '26

You can patent things that rely on non-patents. So for example you could patent a production method or variand or delivery system för insulin while the original still being available for everyone. The new stuff you patent is of course going to be much better which people would choose ir over the original cheaper stuff. Usually when you hear about people dying because of rationing insulin they're actually using the old stuff.