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 .
All previous claim rejections of the Office action dated January 7, 2026, have been withdrawn in view of applicant’s claim amendment submitted on July 7, 2026.
New rejections have been made to address the amended claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukuda et al. (JP 2001037454 A, published on February 13, 2001, previously cited) (“Fukuda” hereunder).
Claim 11 is directed to a process for preparing an antimicrobial and/or anti-inflammatory composition comprising an extract of Arthrospira, and at least one organic acid, comprising the following steps: (i) obtaining an extract of Arthrospira; and (ii) adding at least one agent to decolorize and/or deodorize the Arthrospira extract to provide the antimicrobial and/or anti-inflammatory composition, wherein the at least one agent is added to the Arthrospira extract when the Arthospira extract is in a wet pre-mix intermediate phase such that the addition of the at least one agent produces the organic acid.
Fukuda teaches a method of deodorizing spirulina (Arthrospira) extract, the method comprising a method step of washing spirulina algae in in liquid selected from “a saline solution, ozone water, sodium hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide or the like”. See translation, p. 6, the 3rd full paragraph. Since the reference teaches processing dry algae body such as sprayed-dried algae body, which is viewed equivalent to the extract of Arthrospira according to the present specification, p. 13, [0067]. Since the reference teaches and suggests washing the algae in a hydrogen peroxide solution, the addition of the at least one agent is added “in a wet pre-mix intermediate phase” in which case the organic acid must be inherently produced, unless shown otherwise. The disclosed process of making a deodorized Arthrospira extract would necessarily result in the same product having antimicrobial or anti-inflammatory properties.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukuda as applied to claims 11-13, and further in view of Yuan et al., (CN 109893520 A, published on June 18, 2019) (“Yuan” hereunder).
Fukuda fails to mention adding at least one acid to the extract. However, treating Spirulina extract with an organic acid would have been routinely performed by one of ordinary skill in pharmaceutical or cosmetic art. For example, Yuan teaches making a Spirulina stock solution in gamma-linoleic acid. See translation. P. 5, step (3). Thus, treating the deodorized Arthrospira extract of Fukuda with an organic acid such as gamma-linolecid acid to make a stock solution as motivated by Yuan would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on July 7, 2026, have been considered but are moot in view of the new grounds of rejections as indicated above.
Conclusion
No claims are allowed.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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.
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/GINA C JUSTICE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1617
