Patent Applications on Representative Sectors of Biotechnology in Brazil: an Analysis of the Last Decade

The present article aims to assess the innovative activity in the Brazilian most representative sector in biotechnology field. The search was conducted through patent applications of residents at the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI - Brazil), from 2000 to 2010. This article will also examine the patent applicants' profile and the partnerships among academic institutions and private firms in Brazil The website of European Patent Office (EPO) patent database - Espacenet was used to conduct the survey, and the search strategy fields selected for the patent applications were: (i) Priority Number: BR (Brazil), and (ii) the International Patent Classification (IPC) - C12N, C07K14, and C07H21/04. The patent applications by Brazilian residents, from 2000 to 2010 in the Espacenet for the classifications adopted indicates a total of 396 patent applications in the most representative sectors in biotechnology over the past 10 years. After the Brazilian Innovation Law there is a growth trend line particularly in the years 2007 and 2008. The universities hold 48% of the patent applications in biotechnology, following by Individuals/ Researchers with 20%, Public Research Centers and Private Firms with 15%, and 11% of the total, respectively