A Study of Patenting Activity in <i style="">Aloe vera</i>

330-341 The article studies Aloe vera based patents searched in the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) database, European Patent Office (EPO) database and EKASWA database of the patents notified for opposition of the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), India. Out of the total 102 patents found in the databases, more than 60% of the patents were owned by the US inventors and firms, followed by China, Korea and Germany, which had less than 10 patents each. India did not have any patent. The maximum number of patents pertained to skin care and treatment of skin diseases, followed by those having a wide range of pharmaceutical uses, extraction and isolation of chemical substances, industrial processes, food and beverages, and machinery and equipment used for processing of Aloe vera plant. There is no domination of any company or group of companies in patenting.