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
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I and SEQ ID NO: 4 in the reply filed on 7/23/2026 is acknowledged.
Applicants elected species was deemed to be free of the prior art. The search was extended to another species (see rejection below). As a result, claims 1 and 4 have been examined and claims 2-3 and 5-8 are withdrawn from consideration. While applicant’s elected species may read on one or more withdrawn claims, they have not been fully examined for patentability, and thus a determination of allowability cannot be made with respect to these claims at this time.
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-8 are pending in this application.
Claims 2-3 and 5-8 are withdrawn from consideration.
Claims 1 and 4 are presently under consideration.
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 and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Boyle et al. (WO 2020/257702).
The claims are drawn to a peptide comprising the sequence X-(L)n-Y wherein one of X and Y is an amino acid sequence of an elastin-like polypeptide, the other is an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, L is a linker sequence, and n is 0 or 1.
It is noted that the open language “an amino acid sequence” encompasses 2 or more consecutive amino acids of an elastin-like polypeptide (and of SEQ ID NO: 2).
Boyle et al. teach SEQ ID NO: 300 (DPDKDGTLDAKEL), which comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2 (i.e. DP).
With respect to “an amino acid sequence of elastin-like polypeptide”, it is noted that elastin-like polypeptides comprise the motif (VPGXG)n. Therefore, SEQ ID NO: 300 comprises an amino acid sequence of an elastin-like polypeptide (i.e. DG or GT).
Therefore, SEQ ID NO: 300 corresponds to the instantly claimed peptide wherein one of X and Y is an amino acid sequence of an elastin-like polypeptide, the other is an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and n is 0.
With respect to claim 4, it is noted that “[d]uring examination, statements in the preamble reciting the purpose or intended use of the claimed invention must be evaluated to determine whether the recited purpose or intended use results in a structural difference (or, in the case of process claims, manipulative difference) between the claimed invention and the prior art. If so, the recitation serves to limit the claim” (MPEP 2111.02). In the instant case, the limitation “for recovering rare earth elements" do not appear to add any further structural differences that would distinguish the instant invention with regards to the invention of Boyle et al. Thus, Boyle et al. is deemed to anticipate this claim.
Allowable Subject Matter
SEQ ID NO: 4 is free of the prior art.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SERGIO COFFA whose telephone number is (571)270-3022. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 6AM-4PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, MELISSA FISHER can be reached at 571-270-7430. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SERGIO COFFA Ph.D./
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1658
/SERGIO COFFA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1658
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