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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendments received 02/09/2026 have been entered. Claims 28-29, 31-34, and 37-46 are pending. Any objection or rejection as set forth in the Office Action mailed 08/08/2025 not maintained herein has been overcome and is withdrawn.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statement filed on 09/25/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and have been considered in full, except for the references lined through which were not furnished with the IDS. A signed copy of list of references cited from the IDS is included with this Office Action.
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on 02/09/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of U.S. Patent No. 12390470 has been reviewed and is accepted. The terminal disclaimer has been recorded.
The terminal disclaimer filed on 02/09/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of co-pending application 17/710,987 has been reviewed and is NOT accepted. The non-statutory double patenting rejection has been maintained.
The terminal disclaimer filed on 02/09/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of co-pending application was filed using form PTO/SB/25a which is the incorrect form. Applicant should re-submit the terminal disclaimer using form PTO/AIA /25 (04-13)
It should be noted that applicant is not required to pay another disclaimer fee as set forth in 37 CFR 1.20(d) when submitting a replacement or supplemental terminal disclaimer.
Double Patenting
Claims 28-29, 33, and 46 are provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1, 3, 6, and 7 of copending Application No. 17/710,787 (“the ‘787 application”) in view of Decker (Nutritional Outlook, 2020).
Claims 1, 3, 6, and 7 of the ‘787 application recite a method for increasing video game performance in a subject by administering the subject with a composition comprising from about 2 mg to about 800 mg of paraxanthine, wherein the composition further comprises one or more active agents that substantially including alpha-GPC. Claim 3 further limits the amount of paraxanthine to about 50 mg to about 400 mg.
While the ‘787 claims are directed to a method of increasing video game performance, rather than improving physical performance or cognitive function, this limitation is obvious over Decker.
Decker teaches that video gamers desire modes of improving physical performance of muscles, joints, and eyes, while also reducing cognitive stress and enhancing focus (p. 68, col 1, pars 2-4). Furthermore, video gamers take pre-workout supplements to increase energy and focus (p. 70, col 1, par 3). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed inventions, to administer paraxanthine and alpha-GPC to a subject to increase video game performance with the goal of improving physical performance and cognitive function according to Decker, as these are desirable traits to improve in video gamers.
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 31-32, 34, and 37-45 are objected to for being dependent upon a rejected base claim.
Conclusion
Claims 28-29, 33, and 46 are rejected. Claims 31-32, 34, and 37-45 are objected to.
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MADELINE E BRAUN whose telephone number is (703)756-4533. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30am-5:00pm ET.
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, Jeffrey Murray can be reached at (571) 272-9023. 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.
/M.E.B./Examiner, Art Unit 1624 03/17/2026
/BRENDA L COLEMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1624