DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 21-26, 29, 32-39 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shapiro et al (WO 2015/042101, of record, reference below is to the US patent publication of the WO document, US 2017/0121708, also of record) in view of Kim et al (Sci Rep. 2015, of record).
Claims 21-26, 29-39 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shapiro et al (WO 2015/042101, of record) in view of Kim et al (Sci Rep. 2015 of record) and Stephan et al (US PGPUB 2016/0145348, of record).
These rejections are maintained for reasons made of record and for reasons set forth below.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 9/29/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicants essentially assert that Shapiro et al is directed to RNA-DNA hybrids, not DNA nanoparticles as in the instant claims. Such is not convincing. The instant claims only require “DNA”, and do not remove RNA/DNA hybrids from the claimed scope
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Michael Burkhart whose telephone number is (571)272-2915. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tracy Vivlemore can be reached at 571 272-2914. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
Michael Burkhart
Examiner
Art Unit 1633
/MICHAEL D BURKHART/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1638
Prosecution Insights