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 .
DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in reply to the election/restriction response filed 15 April 2026 for application 18/512,306 filed on 17 November 2023, with PRO 63/426,542 filed on 18 November 2022. Currently, claims 1-30 are pending.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 04 October 2024 was filed after the mailing date of the application on 17 November 2023. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election of Group I in the reply filed 15 April 2026 is acknowledged.
Applicant’s election of the compound drawn to Formula (I), illustrated below, is acknowledged:
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The elected species, per the Applicant’s Remarks, reads upon claims 1, 4-8, 10-11 and 13-15. As such, claims 2-3, 9, 12 and 16-30 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a non-elected invention or species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made in the reply filed on 15 April 2026.
The elected species was searched and found to be free of the prior art.
The search was expanded to the full scope of the claims. The closet match are structures detailed by Koestler et al. (1,4-dihydrobenzo[d]pyrazolo[3,4-f](1,3)diazepine derivatives and related compounds as LRRK2, NUAK1 and/or TYK2 kinase modulators for the treatment of E.G. autoimmune diseases, WO 2021/048620, 2021) with compound 76 on pg. 85 and compound 117 on pg. 95, respectively:
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As Koestler discloses both the methylated pyrazine in compound 76 and the morpholine of compound 117, the combination of both is considered obvious by the Examiner. As such, the novelty of the species is restricted to the use of 2,6-dimethyl morpholine.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 4-8, 10-11, and 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Koestler et al. (1,4-dihydrobenzo[d]pyrazolo[3,4-f](1,3)diazepine derivatives and related compounds as LRRK2, NUAK1 and/or TYK2 kinase modulators for the treatment of E.G. autoimmune diseases, WO 2021/048620, 2021).
Koestler discloses compound 76 on pg. 85 and compound 117 on pg. 95, respectively:
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This reads on claim 1 where n = 3, Y1 = Y2 = C, Z1 = Z2 = F, Z3 = H, X = H or C1-alkyl, R1 = R2 = R4 = H, W = H, L = single bond, and A = unsubstituted heterocycloalkyl (unsubstituted morpholine) as exemplified by compound 117.
As such, claim 1 is anticipated by Koestler.
Regarding the limitations of claim 4, wherein Y1 is C and Y2 is C, are met as both compound 76 and compound 117 comprise Y1 and Y2 as C.
Concerning the limitations of claim 5, wherein X is selected from a group consisting of -CH3, -CH2-CH3, -CD3, H, and F, are met as compound 76 exhibits X as -CH3 and compound 117 exhibits X as H.
With respect to the limitations of claim 6, wherein Z1, Z2, and Z3 are independently selected from H, F, or Cl, are met as in both compounds 76 and 117, Z1 = Z2 = F and Z3 = H.
With regards to the limitations of claim 7, wherein Z1 is F and Z2 is F, are met as in both compounds 76 and 117, Z1 = Z2 = F.
With concern to the limitation of claim 8, wherein Z3 is H, is met as in both compounds 76 and 117, Z3 = H.
Regarding the limitation of claim 10, wherein R1 is selected from H, fluoro, -CH3, -CH2-CH3, -CF3, or -CHF2, is met as in both compounds 76 and 117, R1 = H.
Concerning the limitation of claim 11, wherein R2 is selected from a group consisting of H or F, is met as in both compounds 76 and 117, R2 = H.
With respect to the limitation of claim 13, wherein R4 is H, is met as in both compounds 76 and 117, R4 = H.
With regards to the limitation of claim 14, wherein A is selected from the moieties illustrated on pg. 4-6, is met as compound 117 exemplifies where A = morpholine.
With concern to the limitations of claim 15, wherein the compound of Formula (I) is selected from the table on pgs. 6-12, is met as compounds 76 and 117 disclosed by Koestler, anticipate the following structure on pg. 9 of the claim:
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Summary
Claims 1, 4-8, 10-11 and 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1).
Conclusion
No claims are allowed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Allen Chao whose telephone number is (571)272-7001. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 0700-1300.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, James H Alstrum-Acevedo can be reached at 571-272-5548. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALLEN CHAO/Examiner, Art Unit 1622
/JAMES H ALSTRUM-ACEVEDO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1622
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