Yvonne D'Arcy, a 69-year-old Brisbane grandmother is fighting a US biotech company over who owns human genes.

“People are shocked to learn that their unique genetic code, the moment it is outside of their body and in the test tube, is not owned by them anymore – it’s owned by a corporation,” said Ms D’Arcy’s lawyer.

“It’s very significant, it’s fundamental, in a sense, as to whether this genetic information, whether it’s the BRCA1 gene or another gene, is capable of being privately owned,” she said.

“And that has significance for research, for the development of diagnostic tests and ultimately for the development of cures to genetically-caused diseases.

“The crux of the argument that we will be putting to the High Court is that a human gene, merely by the fact that it is isolated from the human body is not an invention,” she said.

“We say it’s a discovery. Discoveries are not patentable subject matter.”

Were you aware that, under current law, your genes could be patented and privately owned once they are outside of your body? How do you feel about this?