Intelligent pharmaceutical patent search on a near-term gate-based quantum computer

Pharmaceutical patent analysis is the key to product protection for pharmaceutical companies. In patent claims, a Markush structure is a standard chemical structure drawing with variable substituents. Overlaps between apparently dissimilar Markush structures are nearly unrecognizable when the structures span a broad chemical space. We propose a quantum search-based method which performs an exact comparison between two non-enumerated Markush structures with a constraint satisfaction oracle. The quantum circuit is verified with a quantum simulator and the real effect of noise is estimated using a five-qubit superconductivity-based IBM quantum computer. The possibilities of measuring the correct states can be increased by improving the connectivity of the most computation intensive qubits. Depolarizing error is the most influential error. The quantum method to exactly compares two patents is hard to simulate classically and thus creates a quantum advantage in patent analysis.

Analysing the interplay between the right to health and pharmaceutical patent rights in the introduction of a COVID-19 vaccine into the Philippines

Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated economies and public health systems across the globe, increasing the anticipation for the creation of an effective vaccine. With this comes the reinforcement of debates between the right to health and pharmaceutical patent rights. The purpose of this study is to illustrate how the Philippines could attempt to balance the right to health with pharmaceutical patent rights in the introduction of a potential COVID-19 vaccine into the country. Design/methodology/approach This will be accomplished through an examination of the flexibilities allowed by international agreements and domestic patent laws. Findings With the economic and health challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippine Government will have a strong justification to pursue parallel importation and compulsory licencing under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. This is exacerbated by the bold leadership of President Duterte, whose administration has so far shown a propensity to decide in favor of the right to health at the expense of other rights in dealing with the pandemic. Originality/value While this paper focuses on the Philippines, it has a potential application in the least developed and developing countries which aim to gain access to a prospective COVID-19 vaccine. Moreover, while this study discusses the harmonization of laws on the right to health and patent laws as a solution to the COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of access to vaccines, it also calls for solutions that go beyond the application of the law.

Compulsory licensing in pharmaceutical industry: current state of affairs and prospects

The problem of compulsory licensing (CL) in the pharmaceutical industry is being discussed worldwide. The aim of this paper was to analyze the effects of using CL for pharmaceutical drugs (PD) as part of competitive policies aimed at safeguarding the life and health of the population. Using PEST-analysis, we identify the main political, economic, social and technological problems associated with using CL in the pharmaceutical industry. We demonstrate the potential of CL as a tool for countering the threats to public health caused by the abuse of market dominance by pharmaceutical patent holders. At present, both developers of pharmaceutical innovations (patent-holders) and other entities involved in drug circulation are protected by law. There is ongoing debate about the efficacy of CL as a tool ensuring the implementation of competitive policies aimed at safeguarding the rights to life and health. However, in Russia CL is applied only under exceptional circumstances. An economic balance should be sought between the incentives for innovation, long-term profits from selling PDs and PD accessibility.

Proposed Title of the Project: Should China Implement Compulsory Drug Patent Licenses? - From the Perspective of COVID-19

<p>Although China has already issued laws and regulations on compulsory licensing of pharmaceutical patents, it has not yet implemented specific practices. After the outbreak of “COVID-19”, realistic needs have made it urgent for China to implement compulsory drug patent licensing. Therefore, this study will be based on China’s national conditions, combined with China’s laws and regulations on the compulsory licensing of pharmaceutical patents, and compare specific practices in other countries. Through qualitative analysis, it’s clear that China implements compulsory pharmaceutical patent licensing in three aspects: domestic system, international level, and government responsibility. To analyze the feasibility of China’s drug patent compulsory licensing system and provide suggestions.</p>

On Conflicts between Pharmaceutical Patent Protection and the Right to Life and Health Based on a Stackelberg Game

To solve the conflict between pharmaceutical patent protection and the right to life, health and increased patient satisfaction, drug prices can be regulated by levying an excess profit tax. An optimal tax strategy was formulated that not only could lower drug prices and improve public health and welfare, but also considers companies’ earnings. The strategy was based on the Stackelberg game theory as a bi-level mathematical model. In the model, the government is the leader, with patient satisfaction as the main goal, and pharmaceutical companies are the followers, with maximum drug revenue as the goal. The results show that under the premise of ensuring sufficient incentives for patent holders, the optimized tax on excess profit can effectively compensate for the shortcomings of pharmaceutical patent protection, alleviate the failure of market regulation of drug prices, improve patient satisfaction, and increase total social welfare.