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
Applicant's amendment and argument filed 05/14/2026, in response to the non-final rejection, are acknowledged and have been fully considered. Any previous rejection or objection not mentioned herein is withdrawn.
Claims 9-11 are pending and being examined on the merits.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 9, at line 24, recites “and wherein the multivitamin is configured to be administered to a subject with hypertension in combination with an antihypertensive drug, the antihypertensive drug is amlodipine besylate tablet, and the multivitamin is administered at a daily dosage of 600 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) body weight and the amlodipine besylate tablet is administered at a daily dosage of 0.05 mg/kg body weight to achieve a synergistic blood pressure lowering effect”. It is not clear how a multivitamin must be configured to be administered in combination with other drugs or what really this limitation requires. Drugs can be taken with other drugs and there does not need any configuration for that to happen. What are the metes and bounds of configured especially given the context that the invention is to a preparation method of a multivitamin? This limitation is confusing and indefinite.
Claims 10 and 11, recite “wherein the multivitamin is applied to prepare a drug for..” and it is unclear how a drug is applied to prepare a drug for anything. These limitations are confusing for the same reason as just explained on how does one configure a multivitamin to be administered with other drugs. What is required of this limitation? What are the metes and bounds of the limitation and how does one apply a multivitamin to prepare a drug? These limitations are confusing and indefinite.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by He Xinqiao (CN114887052A). This rejection is maintained with slight modifications due to the amendments filed on 05/14/2026.
Xinqiao discloses a preparation method of the multi-vitamin comprises the following steps: the first step is as follows: adding water into Coptis leaves, Silybum marianum, ginger, Cordyceps sinensis, Dendrobium officinale, red ginseng and Eucommia male flowers, adding water in an amount which is 30 times of the weight of the Cordyceps sinensis, decocting for 200 minutes, filtering by adopting a 800-mesh filter screen to obtain a mixed nutrient solution, then placing the nutrient solution into a fermentation tank, adding mucor and brown sugar for fermentation, adding mucor in an amount which is 0.65 percent of the weight of the mixed nutrient solution, adding brown sugar in an amount which is 8 percent of the weight of the mixed nutrient solution, taking out after 100 days of fermentation, adding absolute ethyl alcohol in an amount which is 50 percent of the weight of the mixed nutrient solution, standing for 24 hours, and filtering to obtain a filtrate for later use; the second step is that: and (3) mixing the filtrate obtained in the first step with gamma-globulin, non-transgenic soybean lecithin, camellia oil, sea buckthorn seed oil, mushroom peptide, amino acid, isomaltooligosaccharide, xylitol, nano zinc oxide and bovine bone collagen peptide, and uniformly stirring to obtain the multivitamin (see claim 4).
Xingqiao discloses that the multivitamin is for both the auxillary regulation of blood pressure (see title, and technical field) and teaches the drug is for lowering blood pressure (see page 10, last para.).
Xinqiao discloses “The multivitamin of claim 1, wherein the raw materials of the multivitamin comprise: 4-6 parts of coptis leaves, 5-15 parts of silybum marianum, 5-15 parts of ginger, 5-15 parts of cordyceps sinensis, 5-15 parts of dendrobium officinale, 5-15 parts of red ginseng, 5-15 parts of eucommia male flowers, 10-20 parts of gamma globulin, 10-20 parts of non-transgenic soybean lecithin, 20-40 parts of camellia oil, 10-20 parts of sea buckthorn seed oil, 4-6 parts of champignon, 4-6 parts of amino acid, 5-15 parts of isomaltooligosaccharide, 5-15 parts of xylitol, 0.4-0.6 part of nano zinc oxide and 4-6 parts of bovine bone collagen peptide” (see claim 2).
The limitations on configuring a drug to be administered with another drug or applying the multivitamin appear to be intended uses of the multivitamin after the preparation method and would not structurally alter the invention in any way that make it any different than the prior arts preparation method.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 05/14/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The applicant argues that Xinqiao teaches that a multivitamin must contain isomaltooligosaccharide and xylitol for auxiliary treatment of cardiovascular disease rather than the multivitamin without isomaltooligosaccharide and xylitol for auxiliary regulation of blood pressure as recited in claim 9. Claim 9 does not require this limitation as argued. Instead the applicant uses “comprising” language in the claims which allows for the inclusion of additional ingredients.
The applicant argues that the data provide in the specifications (Table 1, para. 0065) demonstrates the combination of the specific fermented multivitamin with amlodipine besylate results in a significantly greater reduction in systolic blood pressure compared to either agent alone. The invention is to a preparation method and not a method of treating blood pressure so the argument is not relevant to making a multivitamin.
Conclusion
Currently 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JACOB ANDREW BOECKELMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-0043. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.
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JACOB A BOECKELMANExaminer, Art Unit 1655
/ANAND U DESAI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1655
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