The Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) presents his compliments to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and has the honor to notify him of the receipt, on April 15, 1996, of a written communication, dated April 12, 1996, from the European Patent Organisation (EPO), informing the Director General of WIPO of
- the new corporate name of the DSM - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH, an international depositary authority under the Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure, done at Budapest on April 28, 1977, as amended on September 26, 1980 (see Budapest Notification No. 22 of August 27, 1981), which, since January 1, 1996, is "DSMZ - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH";
- a clarification concerning the list of kinds of microorganisms accepted for deposit by DSMZ and of changes in the guidelines relating thereto.
The text of the said communication from the EPO is attached.
The information referred to above will be published in the May 1996 issue of Industrial Property and Copyright/La Propriété industrielle et le Droit d'auteur.
May 30, 1996
Text of the Communication of the European Patent Organisation (EPO), Dated April 12, 1996, Concerning a Change in the Corporate Name of the DSM - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikrooganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH to DSMZ - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikrooganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH, Clarification of the List of Kinds of Microorganisms Accepted for Deposit and Changes in the Guidelines Relating to Restrictions Applicable to Kinds of Microorganisms Accepted for Deposit by the DSMZ
[Original: French; English translation by the International Bureau of WIPO]
COMMUNICATION
I have the honor to inform you of the following changes in respect of the above-mentioned depositary authority:
(1) With effect from January 1, 1996, cancellation of the corporate name of DSM - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH and its replacement by DSMZ - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH
(2) Clarification concerning one of the kinds of microorganisms accepted for deposit by DSMZ, and changes in the guidelines providing for restrictions on the kinds of microorganisms accepted for deposit by the authority.
These changes are given in English and French in the annex to this letter.
In view of the foregoing, I have the honor to inform you that, in accordance with the assurances furnished by the European Patent Organisation on July 23, 1981, March 8, 1988, July 4, 1990, and December 6, 1993, the DSMZ - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH complies and will continue to comply with the requirements specified in Article 6(2) of the Budapest Treaty.
ANNEX
[Provided by the EPO - Changes are marked *.]
Kinds of microorganisms accepted by the DSMZ
The DSMZ accepts the following kinds of microorganisms for deposit in accordance with the Budapest Treaty:
*1. bacteria (including bacteria containing plasmids)
2. fungi (including yeasts)
3. bacteriophages
4. plasmids
5. plant viruses
6. plant cell cultures
7. human and animal cell cultures
8. murine embryos
Particular Conditions
ad 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8
* The DSMZ accepts for deposit only those microorganisms which, pursuant to the notices of the "Berufsgenossenschaft der chemischen Industrie" [German trade association of the chemical industry] on "Sichere Biotechnologie, Eingruppierung biologischer Agenzien" ("Safe biotechnology, classification of biological agents") (bacteria B006, fungi B007, viruses B004, cell cultures B009) or Directive 93/88/EEC on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work (OJ No. L 268/71 dated 29.10.1993), belong to hazard group 1 or 2. An English translation of the texts is also available. If the relevant group is not known, information can be obtained from the DSMZ.
ad 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
* Genetically manipulated organisms and isolated DNA must be processable as group I organisms in accordance with safety levels 1 or 2 of the "Gesetz zur Regelung von Fragen der Gentechnik" [Genetic engineering act] (BGB1. I, pp. 2067-2083, dated 21.12.1993) or in accordance with Directive 90/219/EEC on the contained use of genetically modified microorganisms (OJ No. L 117 dated 8.5.1990).
ad point 5:
Plant viruses which cannot multiply through mechanical infection of plants cannot be accepted for deposit.
ad point 6:
Plant cell cultures can only be deposited in the form of callus of suspension cultures with non-differentiated growth. The material for deposit must be free from contamination by foreign organisms.
ad point 7:
Animal and human cell cultures cannot be accepted for deposit if they are contaminated with viruses or other foreign organisms (particularly mycoplasma). Please note that the DSMZ requires about two weeks for carrying out the necessary check for mycoplasma contamination.
ad point 8:
Before preservation of the embryos by the depositor and subsequent dispatch to the DSMZ information concerning the method to be used must be obtained from the DSMZ.
The DSMZ reserves the right to refuse to accept for deposit material which in its view represents an unacceptable hazard or which it is not in a position to process.
In all instances, it must be possible to preserve the deposited material by lyophilisation or storage in liquid nitrogen or by some other method of long-term preservation without significant change.