61.   But if doctors know exactly which gene is causing the cancer, then they can go after only cells in which those genes are active.

62.   But if genes are not the whole story, it also means those gene patents could be worth less.

63.   But finding a gene is many complex scientific steps away from generating a protein, let alone producing a marketable drug.

64.   But in most cells the gene is permanently repressed and inactive.

65.   But genes are genes.

66.   But in support of their claim that the gene is the right quarry, the French researchers offer very impressive numbers.

67.   But many drug researchers, including molecular biologist Louis Tartaglia of Millennium Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, Mass., believe genes are the dominant factor in weight control.

68.   But once a gene is isolated, cloned, or otherwise altered, the patent office no longer considers the gene to be in its natural state.

69.   But Rink stressed that although the obesity gene was a key component of weight regulation, it was not the only one.

70.   But the genes may be just a predisposing factor, waiting for an environmental trigger to set them off.