Brazilian legal and bioethical approach about donation for research and patents of human body parts

The aim of this paper is to explain why the Brazilian legal system does not accept commercialization or commodification of human body parts, including genes or cells. As a consequence, in Brazil, the donation of human body parts for research—including basic or translational—must be made altruistically. For the same reason, the Brazilian patent system cannot be applied to human parts, cells or genes. Here, we present a qualitative analysis of juridical, bioethical, and social reasoning related to the legal status of human body parts especially in biobanks, as well as a description of the Brazilian legal system for clarification. Our aim is to discuss the responsibility of researchers for making available the scientific information resulting from scientific research and biobank storage of human body parts and to ensure the free utilization of knowledge in human health research.