Stephan:   This is a very interesting reversal of a decades old policy and one might ask why is it happening? It would be lovely to say that the Justice Department suddenly saw the truth that genes are a result of nature, and no one should own a species. I rather suspect, however, that what lies behind this historic shift is the realization that with much of American genetic research influenced if not outright governed by religious dogma, America is falling behind. That being true we could soon find ourselves subordinate to other countries with more sensible policies that patented first, leaving us playing catch up.