AMC I

DNA isolation method by Boom and Sol

The inventors were looking for simple and reliable methods for isolating minute amounts of DNA and RNA molecules, methods which were highly selective and sensitive. They found a very simple reagent (Guanidinium thiocyanate) , which is now used all over the world in many diagnostic kits, sold by many diagnostic companies. Surprisingly, it proved to be patentable.

It’s business stupid

What is it with the Dutch that they have such difficulty grabbing business opportunities in a changing world? We have the brains, we have the money and the opportunities are plenty. Still, during the last 40 years hardly any company of substantial size has emerged next to the old industry in the AEX. Oil, food, materials and financial services dominate the landscape.

We have left the environmental challenges to environmentalists, rather then building innovative businesses in solar or wind energy to help face them. We have exported our knowledge on agriculture around the world, and now that we can more intelligently engineer crops we let the opportunity pass due to invalid arguments around GMOs. Now that “kweekersrecht” is being substituted by patent law we complain instead of adapt.

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