The Bermuda Triangle: The Pragmatics, Policies, and Principles for Data Sharing in the History of the Human Genome Project

The Bermuda Principles for DNA sequence data sharing are an enduring legacy of the Human Genome Project (HGP). They were adopted by the HGP at a strategy meeting in Bermuda in February of 1996 and implemented in formal policies by early 1998, mandating daily release of HGP-funded DNA sequences into the public domain. The idea of daily sharing, we argue, emanated directly from strategies for large, goal-directed molecular biology projects first tested within the "community" of C. elegans researchers, and were introduced and defended for the HGP by the nematode biologists John Sulston and Robert Waterston. In the C. elegans community, and subsequently in the HGP, daily sharing served the pragmatic goals of quality control and project coordination. Yet in the HGP human genome, we also argue, the Bermuda Principles addressed concerns about gene patents impeding scientific advancement, and were aspirational and flexible in implementation and justification. They endured as an archetype for how rapid data sharing could be realized and rationalized, and permitted adaptation to the needs of various scientific communities. Yet in addition to the support of Sulston and Waterston, their adoption also depended on the clout of administrators at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the UK nonprofit charity the Wellcome Trust, which together funded 90% of the HGP human sequencing effort. The other nations wishing to remain in the HGP consortium had to accommodate to the Bermuda Principles, requiring exceptions from incompatible existing or pending data access policies for publicly funded research in Germany, Japan, and France. We begin this story in 1963, with the biologist Sydney Brenner's proposal for a nematode research program at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) at the University of Cambridge. We continue through 2003, with the completion of the HGP human reference genome, and conclude with observations about policy and the historiography of molecular biology.

Governing genomics in the 21st century: between risk and uncertainty

The paper reconstructs the governance of genomics by sketching the main features, modes of operation and tactics of the emerging genomics apparatus. Genomic governance in the 20th century is characterized by the simultaneous operation of a process of the stabilization of knowledge regimes, in particular via patenting. Furthermore, we observe a heterogenization and globalization of the actors and knowledge creating systems in genomics governance. A variety of different mechanisms and strategies of governance are mobilized simultaneously. The transition of governing via risk to governance by uncertainty is another important feature of contemporary genomics governance. The implications of these trends for the regulation of genomics are considerable and might lead to the emergence of new patterns and spaces of conflict and controversy. The governance of genomics in the 21st century could become a more complex challenge than currently anticipated by many policy makers and the scientific community.

Human genome. Storm erupts over terms for publishing Celera's sequence

A dispute has been raging behind the scenes for weeks over the conditions under which Celera Genomics is prepared to make its human genome sequence data publicly available. The argument went public on 6 December, when geneticist Michael Ashburner e-mailed an open letter to Science's board of reviewing editors and members of the press slamming an agreement on data release that Science had reached with Celera as a condition for accepting its paper for review. This spat is the latest round in an intense rivalry between Celera president J. Craig Venter and leaders of the Human Genome Project, a publicly funded consortium that has produced its own draft human genome sequence.

Genomics in the public domain: strategy and policy

The public domain has been conspicuous in media accounts of public and private sector initiatives to complete the sequence of the human genome. The issue of whether the human genome will be freely available to the public or privately held as a proprietary resource has captured the attention of the scientific, trade and popular press, the financial markets, and even heads of state. Although some media commentary has framed the issue as a conflict between ethics and greed, strategic considerations go a long way towards explaining the timing and quality of information disclosures on both sides of the public-private divide.