Includes bibliographical references and index.

Bioinformatics overview / A. James Cuticchia -- Commercial software licensing / Jeremy T. Marr -- Open source software and bioinformatics / Michele K. Herman, Jane Eckels, Joanne Montague and Jordan J. Bowler -- Software development / Heather J. Meeker -- Software patents / Gregory J. Kirsch and Charley F. Brown -- A gene patent primer / Jennifer Carter-Johnson -- Privacy, property rights, and gene ownership / Richard A. Spinello -- Bioinformatics collaborations : key considerations in negotiating a deal / Kimberly J. Wade -- University research and licensing / Jennifer Carter-Johnson, Jeffrey S. Carter-Johnson, and Jorge L. Contreras -- Technical standards and bioinformatics / Jorge L. Contreras -- Database protection / Jon M. Garon -- Data release and access / Jorge L. Contreras -- Information security and privacy challenges in bioinformatics / Lucy L. Thomson and Arthur E. Peabody Jr. -- DNA databanks and informed consent / Herman T. Tavani and Maria Bottis -- Informatics and public-health surveillance / Leslie P. Francis and John G. Francis.

This is a collection of cutting-edge research and commentary from leading scholars, bioethicists and legal practitioners, covering the broad and ever-changing intersection of law and bioinformatics. The book begins with an overview of the evolving bioinformatics field then explores legal issues surrounding the software tools that enable large-scale computational biology, including procurement and licensing of commercial software systems, in-house and contracted software development and issues surrounding open source software. Legal issues associated with software tools for large-scale computational biology are examined, including procurement and licensing of commercial software systems, in-house and contracted software development, and open source software.