Interrelationship Between Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge: An Example from Earthworm Fibrinolytic Enzyme

Abstract

The interrelationship between genetic resources and traditional knowledge under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has seldom been discussed. However, this interrelationship affects the application of access and benefit sharing (ABS) rules under CBD. Earthworms, a traditional medicine in China and some other regions in Asia, have been established to contain special fibrinolytic enzymes, which can be used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The results from experiments on five earthworm species show the possibility of coupling traditional knowledge with multiple genetic resources from different communities or countries, which will complicate the application of ABS rules. If several communities share the same genetic resources or independently develop the same traditional knowledge, users may conduct forum shopping and avoid the ABS policies in certain jurisdictions. Also, with the assistance of biotechnology, users may benefit from the sequence information of a species without utilizing or accessing its tangible biomaterials. Therefore, more clarifications and regulations of the interrelationship between genetic resources and traditional knowledge are needed.