Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 04, 2026
Application No. 18/046,857

ACTIVE AGENTS AGAINST CORONAVIRUS INFECTIONS AND DISEASES CAUSED THEREBY

Final Rejection §103
Filed
Oct 14, 2022
Priority
Apr 17, 2020 — DE 10 2020 110573.8 +1 more
Examiner
AULAKH, CHARANJIT
Art Unit
1621
Tech Center
1600 — Biotechnology & Organic Chemistry
Assignee
EBERHARD KARLS UNIVERSITÄT TÜBINGEN
OA Round
2 (Final)
81%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
65%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 81% — above average
81%
Career Allowance Rate
1414 granted / 1749 resolved
+20.8% vs TC avg
Minimal -16% lift
Without
With
+-15.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 0m
Avg Prosecution
48 currently pending
Career history
1797
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.9%
-38.1% vs TC avg
§103
15.2%
-24.8% vs TC avg
§102
21.1%
-18.9% vs TC avg
§112
42.6%
+2.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1749 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 . According to paper filed on Feb. 11, 2026, the applicants have canceled claims 2-5 and 11-14 and furthermore, have amended claims 1 and 10. Claims 1, 6-10 and 15-25 are pending in the application. Response to Arguments Applicant's arguments filed on Feb. 11, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive regarding written description rejection, prior art rejection, obviousness rejection and Improper Markush Group rejection. The applicants have amended claims to overcome enablement rejection. Regarding written description rejection, the applicants argue on pages 4-5 that based on two inhibitors, BET-151 and CP-1203, the specification has written description for using every known BRD2 inhibitor and BRD4 inhibitor of diverse structures in the art for treating coronavirus infection. The examiner does not agree with these arguments. There is no teaching, disclosure or written description for using any other BRD2/4 inhibitor in the art besides these two inhibitors. Regarding prior art and obviousness rejections, the examiner does not agree with the applicant’s arguments. Both of these references teach using BRD2 and or BDR4 inhibitors for treating coronavirus. The applicant’s attention is drawn to claims 3, 5 and 7 of WO 2011/054843 A1 and claims 1-3 as well as paragraph 0012 on page 2 and paragraph 0022 on page 3 of CN 110101705 (see English translation). The examiner also does not agree with the applicant’s arguments on page 7 that there is common structural core present between all known BRD2 and BRD4 inhibitors in the art. Conclusion The written description rejection of claims 1, 6, 9-10, 15 and 18-25 under 35 U.S.C. 112, 1st paragraph is maintained. The prior art rejection of claims 1, 6, 9-10 and 15 under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a) (1) over WO 2011/054843 A1 is maintained. The obviousness rejection of claims 1, 6-10 and 15-25 under 35 U.S.C. 103(a) over CN 110101705 A is maintained. The Improper Markush Group rejection of claims 1, 6, 9-10, 15 and 18-25 is maintained. 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 CHARANJIT AULAKH whose telephone number is (571)272-0678. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00-3:30. 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, Clinton A Brooks can be reached at 571-270-7682. 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. /CHARANJIT AULAKH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1621
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 14, 2022
Application Filed
Sep 07, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §103
Feb 11, 2026
Response Filed
Feb 27, 2026
Final Rejection — §103 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
81%
Grant Probability
65%
With Interview (-15.8%)
2y 0m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1749 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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