Informed Consent, Body Property, and Self-Sovereignty

Area of Science:

• Bioethics
• Human Research Ethics
• Property Law

Background:

• Informed consent in human research is frequently insufficient, particularly concerning biosamples from vulnerable populations.
• Current legal frameworks fail to protect donors of biological materials adequately, leaving them without property rights.
• This inadequacy can lead to exploitation and oppression, treating research subjects as objects rather than autonomous individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically evaluate the efficacy of informed consent in human biosample research.
• To explore the potential of property law principles to enhance the rights and protections of human research subjects.
• To advocate for a legal framework that recognizes the autonomy and rights of individuals donating biological materials.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of recent cases involving biosamples from indigenous tribes and newborn babies.
• Review of existing legal doctrines concerning informed consent and property law.
• Theoretical exploration of applying property rights to biological materials donated for research.

Main Results:

• Informed consent often fails to provide genuine understanding or meaningful agreement from research subjects.
• Current law denies property rights to donors of biological materials, unlike other individuals.
• Avoiding property rights paradoxically objectifies research subjects, enabling exploitation.

Conclusions:

• Reconsidering informed consent is crucial for ethical human research.
• Conferring property rights on biological materials could empower research subjects.
• Granting property rights may enable subjects to control research, share in benefits, and regain self-sovereignty.