In the wake of last week's ruling striking down medical diagnostic patents, the Supreme Court has asked an appeals court to reconsider a year-old ruling allowing patents on human genes.

In the 1990s, a company called Myriad Genetics obtained patents related to two genes, known as BRCA1 and BRCA2, that are linked to breast cancer. They have used those patents to establish a monopoly on BRCA gene testing services.

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