PCT Newsletter
November 2025 | No. 11/2025
Special Feature: PCT and the 2025 Nobel Prize
This year’s Nobel Prize winners in science and technology are a powerful reminder of the role that intellectual property (IP) plays in improving lives. As of October 2025, around 200 PCT applications have been filed by this year’s Nobel Prize laureates.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025
Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M. Yaghi were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025 for the development of a new type of molecular architecture: metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). One notable PCT application involving Richard Robson is PCT/AU2017/050727 : Methods of capturing and storing anaesthetics using metal organic frameworks. Since 1997, Susumu Kitagawa has more than 40 PCT filings of which four PCT applications are on his improved MOFs structure. Omar M. Yaghi has been a big user of WIPO’s PCT system since 1999. 72 patent applications went through the PCT route to gain protection in multiple countries. His earliest PCT filings can be traced back to 2002 - PCT/US2002/013763 (Isoreticular metal-organic frameworks, process for forming the same, and systematic design of pore size and functionality therein, with application for gas storage). The latest (PCT/US2024/050115 - Covalent organic frameworks for atmospheric water harvesting) was filed in 2024 and published in April this year.
Nobel Prize in Physics 2025
The Nobel Prize in Physics 2025 was awarded to John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantisation in an electric circuit”. There are about 20 PCT filings from Michel H. Devoret (mainly Yale University as applicant), and 16 PCT filings from John M. Martinis, mainly with Google as applicant from 2017 to 2023. For example: PCT/US2019/012441 - Hardware-efficient fault-tolerant operations with superconducting circuits.
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025 was awarded jointly to Mary E. Brunkow, Frederick J. Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi "for their discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance". Not surprisingly, the Nobel Physiology/Medicine laureates are big users of PCT as well. Seven PCT filings from Mary E. Brunkow are found since 1999. Among these, there are two PCT applications co-filed by Mary E. Brunkow and Fred Ramsdell. Frederick J. Ramsdell (seven PCT filings) and Shimon Sakaguchi (25 PCT filings) have also continuously used the PCT system since 1997 to seek patents in multiple countries. For example, PCT/US2002/015897- A method for regulating immune function in primates using the foxp3 protein, PCT/US1999/018407 - Identification of the gene causing the mouse scurfy phenotype and its human ortholog, and PCT/US2006/018540 - Methods of using phhla2 to co-stimulate T-cells.
*Note: All patent data were sourced from PATENTSCOPE using inventor-name and chemical-compound search if applicable, as of October 2025.
References:
Popular information. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach 2025
Advanced information. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach 2025
Advanced information. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach 2025
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