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 .
Status of Application
Receipt of Applicant’s response to the restriction requirement filed on September 30, 2026 is acknowledged.
No claims amendments have been submitted.
Claims 1-20 are pending in this application.
Election/Restrictions
Applicants’ election without traverse of Group I (claims 1-9) in the reply filed on September 30, 2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 10-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Groups II and III, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Claims 1-9 are under prosecution in this application.
Information Disclosure Statement
Receipt of the Information Disclosure Statement filed on September 30, 2026 is acknowledged. A signed copy is attached to this office action.
The listing of references in the specification is not a proper information disclosure statement. 37 CFR 1.98(b) requires a list of all patents, publications, or other information submitted for consideration by the Office, and MPEP § 609.04(a) states, "the list may not be incorporated into the specification but must be submitted in a separate paper." Therefore, unless the references have been cited by the examiner on form PTO-892, they have not been considered.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
*the formula on page 8 of a BAC is illegible;
*page 11 contains an embedded hyperlink and/or other form of browser-executable code. Applicant is required to delete the embedded hyperlink and/or other form of browser-executable code; references to websites should be limited to the top-level domain name without any prefix such as http:// or other browser-executable code. See MPEP § 608.01; and
*the reaction sequences on page 19 are illegible.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 6-9 are objected to under 37 CFR 1.75(c) as being in improper form because a multiple dependent claim should refer to other claims in the alternative only. See MPEP § 608.01(n). Accordingly, the claim have not been further treated on the merits.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Miller et al. (US 10,751,364).
Miller discloses a topical application of nitric oxide may be provided by two separate containers, each containing an active component media to produce nitric oxide when combined. For example, a nitrite component media may be contained in one dispenser and an acidified component media may be contained in another dispenser (abstract).
A first solution may comprise water (a liquid), sodium nitrite (a nitrate), and a cationic surfactant (optional surfactant). A second solution may comprise water (a liquid), lactic acid and citric acid (protic acids), and the cationic surfactant (optional surfactant) (column 2, lines 13-16).
Each container may then dispense the respective topical component in a foam, or foamy suspension. The resultant, foam, topical components may then be combined and applied to the skin surface of a person (column 2, lines 4-12). Upon mixing the first and second foams, nitric oxide begins to be produced and the resultant foam is allowed to remain on the skin for at least 3 minutes (column 2, lines 20-25). The Examiner has interpreted this to be a film.
The solution mediums may be any suitable medium for containing and dispensing the reactants, for example, the medium or carrier may be a foam, gel, serum, solution, or lotion (column 4, lines 21-23).
Regarding claims 2-4, a gel may be obtained by including a water-soluble polymer, such as methyl cellulose available as METHOCEL™, in a suitable solution. A serum may be obtained by including polyacrylate in a suitable solution. A foam may be obtained by placing a serum, or other suitable liquid, in an appropriate dispenser that may inject air into the serum or liquid and dispense the media as a foam. A lotion used to suspend the reactants for a nitrite lotion medium and an acidified lotion medium may be selected such as the JERGENS® brand hand and body lotion (column 4, lines 24-34).
Regarding claim 5, as noted above, a first solution may comprise water (a liquid), sodium nitrite (a nitrate), and a cationic surfactant (optional surfactant). A second solution may comprise water (a liquid), lactic acid and citric acid (protic acids), and the cationic surfactant (optional surfactant) (column 2, lines 13-16). While specific surfactants are recited in the instant claim, the presence of a surfactant is an optional component, as noted in claim 1. Also as noted above, a gel formulation can be obtained by including a water-soluble polymer, such as methyl cellulose.
Miller, therefore, anticipates the rejected claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MELISSA S MERCIER whose telephone number is (571)272-9039. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 6:30 am to 4 pm EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Robert A Wax can be reached at 571-272-0623. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MELISSA S MERCIER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1615
