HPPD Variants and Methods of Use

§102 §103 §112

DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 1. The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions. Status of the Claims 2. Claims 1-41 are pending. 3. Claims 5-16, 19-22, 26-28, and 31 are withdrawn. 4. Claims 1-4, 17, 18, 23-25, 29, 30, and 32-41 are examined herein. Election/Restrictions 5. Applicant’s election with traverse of Group I, claims 1-18, 23-25, 29, 30, and 32-41; and SEQ ID NO: 2 and position 421 as species, in the reply filed on July 8, 2026 is acknowledged. While Applicant states that the election of the invention and species was made with traverse, Applicant does not supply any actual arguments in traverse (see pages 1 and 2 of the Remarks). Accordingly, the traversal is not found to be persuasive. The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL. Claims 19-22, 26-28, and 31 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. In addition, claims 5-16 required and read on only the non-elected species – the SEQ ID NO’s which along with the elected species, SEQ ID NO: 2, were listed in List 1 in the Restriction/Election Requirement. Consequently, these claims are withdrawn as being drawn only to the non-elected species. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on July 8, 2026. Claims 1-4, 17, 18, 23-25, 29, 30, and 32-41 are examined herein. Claim Objections 6. Claims 18, 29, and 34 are objected to because of the following informalities. In claim 18, the species names should be italicized, the name “oryza sativa” should also be capitalized, and the common names that follow a slash, for example in “Zea mays/ corn,” should be deleted for clarity. In claim 29, in the phrase “into a said plant,” the indefinite article should be deleted. In claim 34, the phrase “obtainable from” should be replaced with –obtained by—for clarity. Appropriate correction is required. Specification 7. The specificaiton is objected to because Table 2b, on pages 35-57, which is titled “Alignment of a representative set of HPPD sequences,” contains text that is not properly formatted, which makes it impossible to identify individual sequences or see how they are aligned. Appropriate correction is required. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 - Indefiniteness 8. 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. 9. Claims 4, 29, 30, 32, 37, 40, and 41 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. In claim 4, the use of the parentheticals reciting the apparent GenBank accession numbers renders the claim indefinite. Database accession numbers are arbitrary designations that may change over time. Without the recitation of specific amino acid sequences for the corresponding HPPD proteins, said designations render the claim indefinite. The metes and bounds are unclear. Deleting the parentheticals could help overcome the rejection. In claim 29, the phrase “said operably linked nucleic acid” lacks sufficient antecedent basis either within the claim or in claim 1 from which claim 29 depends. Claim 30 is drawn to “The method of claim 29, wherein the nucleic acid is introduced into said plant.” However, claim 29 already requires the step of “introducing into [said] plant the nucleic acid” and obtaining “progeny” comprising said nucleic acid. It is thus unclear how the product-by-process limitation “is introduced,” in claim 30 limits the method of claim 29. In claim 32, the term “in genetic information thereof” renders the claim indefinite. It is unclear what is meant by the “genetic information” (which is not a product) or how the “nucleic acid” may be comprised in said “information.” If the claim intended to indicate that the nucleic acid is incorporated into the genome of the plant cell, this should be clearly reflected in the claim language. In claim 37, the term “The progeny” lacks antecedent basis in claim 33, because the base claim does not recite any progeny plants. Claim 40 reads as follows: “The chimeric gene of claim 25, operably linked to a plant expressible promoter capable of being used for modulating the tolerance of a plant to at least one HPPD inhibitor herbicide applied for controlling weeds.” The wording of the claim renders it indefinite for the following reasons. It is unclear what antecedent the term “capable of being used” refers to: the promoter or the chimeric gene. It is also unclear how the entire clause that begins with the word “capable” is meant to limit the “chimeric gene” beyond the presence of the substitutions recited in claim 1 or the presence of the promoter recited in claim 1. In claim 41, the phrase “wherein the tolerance of a plant … is increased” renders the claim indefinite. First, it is unclear whether “a plant” is meant to refer to “said plant” recited in claims 30 and 29 from which claim 41 depends. Second, it is unclear relative to what control the tolerance is meant to be “increased,” or how the recitation of said “increase” is meant to relate to or limit the active steps of claims 29 or 30. The metes and bounds are unclear. Claim Interpretation 10. The following is noted with regard to claim interpretation. Claims 1 and 2 refer to amino acid substitutions at a relative position corresponding to position 421 of SEQ ID NO: 2. Claim 17 not only recites SEQ ID NO: 2 as a relative sequence but actually requires that the claimed mutant HPPD comprise SEQ ID NO: 2 (with at least one of the recited substitutions). The specification teaches that SEQ ID NO: 2 is the amino acid sequence of the HPPD from Arabidopsis thaliana (page 114). Tables 6a and 6b, on pages 69-70, teach that position 421 of SEQ ID NO: 2, where the Arabidopsis HPPD has a lysine, corresponds to position 335 of the Pseudomonas fluorescens HPPD, which has a glutamic acid in that position. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 11. The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: (a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. 12. Claims 1-4, 17, 18, 23-25, 29, 30, and 32-41 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Boudec et al (US Patent No. 6,245,968), in view of Hawkes et al (WIPO publication WO 2010/085705) and GenBank Accession Number AF047834 (submitted May 14, 1999). Boudec et al teach, at SEQ ID NO: 31, an amino acid sequence of the wild-type HPPD from Pseudomonas fluorescens; and at SEQ ID NO: 28, an amino acid sequence of the wild-type HPPD from Arabidopsis thaliana, which has 100% identity to the instant SEQ ID NO: 2. Boudec et al teach the GenBank Accession Number for said HPPD from A. thaliana, AF047834 (col. 2, legend to Fig. 1). The alignment between SEQ ID NO: 28 of Boudec et al and the instant SEQ ID NO: 2 is set forth below. In the alignment, SEQ ID NO: 2 is the “Query.” Range 1: 1 to 445 Score Expect Method Identities Positives Gaps 920 bits(2377) 0.0 Compositional matrix adjust. 445/445(100%) 445/445(100%) 0/445(0%) Query 1 MGHQNAAVSENQNHDDGAASSPGFKLVGFSKFVRKNPKSDKFKVKRFHHIEFWCGDATNV 60 MGHQNAAVSENQNHDDGAASSPGFKLVGFSKFVRKNPKSDKFKVKRFHHIEFWCGDATNV Sbjct 1 MGHQNAAVSENQNHDDGAASSPGFKLVGFSKFVRKNPKSDKFKVKRFHHIEFWCGDATNV 60 Query 61 ARRFSWGLGMRFSAKSDLSTGNMVHASYLLTSGDLRFLFTAPYSPSLSAGEIKPTTTASI 120 ARRFSWGLGMRFSAKSDLSTGNMVHASYLLTSGDLRFLFTAPYSPSLSAGEIKPTTTASI Sbjct 61 ARRFSWGLGMRFSAKSDLSTGNMVHASYLLTSGDLRFLFTAPYSPSLSAGEIKPTTTASI 120 Query 121 PSFDHGSCRSFFSSHGLGVRAVAIEVEDAESAFSISVANGAIPSSPPIVLNEAVTIAEVK 180 PSFDHGSCRSFFSSHGLGVRAVAIEVEDAESAFSISVANGAIPSSPPIVLNEAVTIAEVK Sbjct 121 PSFDHGSCRSFFSSHGLGVRAVAIEVEDAESAFSISVANGAIPSSPPIVLNEAVTIAEVK 180 Query 181 LYGDVVLRYVSYKAEDTEKSEFLPGFERVEDASSFPLDYGIRRLDHAVGNVPELGPALTY 240 LYGDVVLRYVSYKAEDTEKSEFLPGFERVEDASSFPLDYGIRRLDHAVGNVPELGPALTY Sbjct 181 LYGDVVLRYVSYKAEDTEKSEFLPGFERVEDASSFPLDYGIRRLDHAVGNVPELGPALTY 240 Query 241 VAGFTGFHQFAEFTADDVGTAESGLNSAVLASNDEMVLLPINEPVHGTKRKSQIQTYLEH 300 VAGFTGFHQFAEFTADDVGTAESGLNSAVLASNDEMVLLPINEPVHGTKRKSQIQTYLEH Sbjct 241 VAGFTGFHQFAEFTADDVGTAESGLNSAVLASNDEMVLLPINEPVHGTKRKSQIQTYLEH 300 Query 301 NEGAGLQHLALMSEDIFRTLREMRKRSSIGGFDFMPSPPPTYYQNLKKRVGDVLSDDQIK 360 NEGAGLQHLALMSEDIFRTLREMRKRSSIGGFDFMPSPPPTYYQNLKKRVGDVLSDDQIK Sbjct 301 NEGAGLQHLALMSEDIFRTLREMRKRSSIGGFDFMPSPPPTYYQNLKKRVGDVLSDDQIK 360 Query 361 ECEELGILVDRDDQGTLLQIFTKPLGDRPTIFIEIIQRVGCMMKDEEGKAYQSGGCGGFG 420 ECEELGILVDRDDQGTLLQIFTKPLGDRPTIFIEIIQRVGCMMKDEEGKAYQSGGCGGFG Sbjct 361 ECEELGILVDRDDQGTLLQIFTKPLGDRPTIFIEIIQRVGCMMKDEEGKAYQSGGCGGFG 420 Query 421 KGNFSELFKSIEEYEKTLEAKQLVG 445 KGNFSELFKSIEEYEKTLEAKQLVG Sbjct 421 KGNFSELFKSIEEYEKTLEAKQLVG 445 Boudec et al teach isolated nucleic acids encoding mutated HPPD proteins that are enzymatically active but are less sensitive to HPPD inhibitors (col. 1, lines 9-16; col. 3, lines 46-60; claims 1, 11, and 12). Boudec et al teach the importance of the C-terminal part of the enzyme, particularly positions 290 to 350 to enzymatic activity and herbicide tolerance (col. 2, lines 46-60; col. 3, line 55 – col. 4, line 16.). Boudec et al teach that “any amino acid which exhibits greater steric hindrance than the replaced amino acid can be employed for the mutation according to the invention” (col. 4, lines 25-27). Boudec et al teach that amino acids could also be replaced with an ionized or ionizable amino acid (col. 4, lines 17-20). Boudec teach mutating Gly334 and Gly336 into every other amino acid and screening the resultant mutants (col. 13 lines 10-14). Boudec et al teach using several methods to introduce said mutations into a plant HPPD. At Examples 2-5, Boudec et al teach using random and site-directed mutagenesis methods to introduce a variety of mutations into the P. fluorescens HPPD (see Example 2 in col. 11; and Examples 3-5). Boudec et al teach mutating HPPDs from Arabidopsis thaliana, Daucus carota, or Zea mays (Example 2, col. 12) Boudec et al teach making expression vectors comprising the nucleic acid sequences encoding the mutant P. fluorescens HPPD and plant-operable promoter, and using said vectors to obtain transformed plants. Boudec et al teach that in the transformed plants, the level of tolerance to HPPD inhibitor herbicide is higher with mutated HPPD than in plants expressing a corresponding non-mutated HPPD (Example 6, beginning in col. 16; col. 21 lines 10-22; see also Assay results in col. 21 and 22). Boudec et al teach plants cells, and seeds of the plant comprising the mutant HPPD (claims 1, 17-26, and 29). Boudec et al teach a method that comprises growing resistant plants in a field and applying HPPD inhibitor to said field (claims 25-28). Boudec et al teach a method for transforming plants with a nucleic acid encoding the mutated HPPDs of their invention, wherein the mutated HPPD confers to the plant tolerance to a diketonitrile (col. 6, lines 54-62). Boudec et al teach that HPPD inhibitors act by competing with the substrate for the ligand binding site (col. 2, lines 36-46). Boudec et al do not expressly teach mutating the HPPD at a position corresponding to position 335 of the Pseudomonas HPPD. Boudec et al do not expressly teach a nucleic acid encoding the HPPD from Arabidopsis. Hawkes et al teach nucleic acids encoding an herbicide resistant mutant HPPD comprising the peptide sequence of GFGKGNFS (SEQ ID NO: 69 of Hawkes et al), wherein the lysine is replaced with any other amino acid, including alanine, serine or threonine (page 5, lines 13-14; claim 1(nn); Tables 5-7). A comparison of said peptide with the HPPD alignments in Figure 1 of Boudec et al shows that it is present in plant species, including Arabidopsis thaliana and Zea mays, and corresponds to sequence “GFGEGNFK” at positions 332-339 of the Pseudomonas fluorescens HPPD. The residue K335 of the plant HPPD thus corresponds to E335 of the Pseudomonas enzyme. Hawkes et al teach introducing the mutations encoding amino acid changes into plant-derived HPPDs “either singly or in combination” (page 11, lines 1-3). Hawkes et al teach making mutant HPPD nucleic acids optimized for expression in a target crop, including soybean, and preparing them synthetically (pg. 85, lines 3-6). Hawkes et al teach an expression cassette comprising a promoter and a nucleic acid encoding the mutant HPPD (pg. 8, lines 16-19). Hawkes et al teach a vector for conferring HPPD inhibitor resistance comprising a soybean codon-optimized Oat HPPD (Figures 6-9; pg. 27, lines 22-29). Hawkes et al teach using the mutant HPPDs of their invention in methods of controlling weeds wherein the plant is resistant to HPPD inhibitors (pg. 62, lines 16-29). GenBank Accession Number AF047834 teaches the nucleic acid encoding the HPPD protein from Arabidopsis thaliana that has 100% sequence identity to the instant SEQ ID NO: 1. The alignment is set forth below. In the alignment, the instant SEQ ID NO: 1 is the “Query.” Alignment statistics for match #1 Score Expect Identities Gaps Strand 2466 bits(1335) 0.0 1335/1335(100%) 0/1335(0%) Plus/Plus Query 1 ATGGGCCACCAAAACGCCGCCGTTTCAGAGAATCAAAACCATGATGACGGCGCTGCGTCG 60 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 24 ATGGGCCACCAAAACGCCGCCGTTTCAGAGAATCAAAACCATGATGACGGCGCTGCGTCG 83 Query 61 TCGCCGGGATTCAAGCTCGTCGGATTTTCCAAGTTCGTAAGAAAGAATCCAAAGTCTGAT 120 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 84 TCGCCGGGATTCAAGCTCGTCGGATTTTCCAAGTTCGTAAGAAAGAATCCAAAGTCTGAT 143 Query 121 AAATTCAAGGTTAAGCGCTTCCATCACATCGAGTTCTGGTGCGGCGACGCAACCAACGTC 180 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 144 AAATTCAAGGTTAAGCGCTTCCATCACATCGAGTTCTGGTGCGGCGACGCAACCAACGTC 203 Query 181 GCTCGTCGCTTCTCCTGGGGTCTGGGGATGAGATTCTCCGCCAAATCCGATCTTTCCACC 240 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 204 GCTCGTCGCTTCTCCTGGGGTCTGGGGATGAGATTCTCCGCCAAATCCGATCTTTCCACC 263 Query 241 GGAAACATGGTTCACGCCTCTTACCTACTCACCTCCGGTGACCTCCGATTCCTTTTCACT 300 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 264 GGAAACATGGTTCACGCCTCTTACCTACTCACCTCCGGTGACCTCCGATTCCTTTTCACT 323 Query 301 GCTCCTTACTCTCCGTCTCTCTCCGCCGGAGAGATTAAACCGACAACCACAGCTTCTATC 360 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 324 GCTCCTTACTCTCCGTCTCTCTCCGCCGGAGAGATTAAACCGACAACCACAGCTTCTATC 383 Query 361 CCAAGTTTCGATCACGGCTCTTGTCGTTCCTTCTTCTCTTCACATGGTCTCGGTGTTAGA 420 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 384 CCAAGTTTCGATCACGGCTCTTGTCGTTCCTTCTTCTCTTCACATGGTCTCGGTGTTAGA 443 Query 421 GCCGTTGCGATTGAAGTAGAAGACGCAGAGTCAGCTTTCTCCATCAGTGTAGCTAATGGC 480 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 444 GCCGTTGCGATTGAAGTAGAAGACGCAGAGTCAGCTTTCTCCATCAGTGTAGCTAATGGC 503 Query 481 GCTATTCCTTCGTCGCCTCCTATCGTCCTCAATGAAGCAGTTACGATCGCTGAGGTTAAA 540 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 504 GCTATTCCTTCGTCGCCTCCTATCGTCCTCAATGAAGCAGTTACGATCGCTGAGGTTAAA 563 Query 541 CTATACGGCGATGTTGTTCTCCGATATGTTAGTTACAAAGCAGAAGATACCGAAAAATCC 600 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 564 CTATACGGCGATGTTGTTCTCCGATATGTTAGTTACAAAGCAGAAGATACCGAAAAATCC 623 Query 601 GAATTCTTGCCAGGGTTCGAGCGTGTAGAGGATGCGTCGTCGTTCCCATTGGATTATGGT 660 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 624 GAATTCTTGCCAGGGTTCGAGCGTGTAGAGGATGCGTCGTCGTTCCCATTGGATTATGGT 683 Query 661 ATCCGGCGGCTTGACCACGCCGTGGGAAACGTTCCTGAGCTTGGTCCGGCTTTAACTTAT 720 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 684 ATCCGGCGGCTTGACCACGCCGTGGGAAACGTTCCTGAGCTTGGTCCGGCTTTAACTTAT 743 Query 721 GTAGCGGGGTTCACTGGTTTTCACCAATTCGCAGAGTTCACAGCAGACGACGTTGGAACC 780 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 744 GTAGCGGGGTTCACTGGTTTTCACCAATTCGCAGAGTTCACAGCAGACGACGTTGGAACC 803 Query 781 GCCGAGAGCGGTTTAAATTCAGCGGTCCTGGCTAGCAATGATGAAATGGTTCTTCTACCG 840 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 804 GCCGAGAGCGGTTTAAATTCAGCGGTCCTGGCTAGCAATGATGAAATGGTTCTTCTACCG 863 Query 841 ATTAACGAGCCAGTGCACGGAACAAAGAGGAAGAGTCAGATTCAGACGTATTTGGAACAT 900 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 864 ATTAACGAGCCAGTGCACGGAACAAAGAGGAAGAGTCAGATTCAGACGTATTTGGAACAT 923 Query 901 AACGAAGGCGCAGGGCTACAACATCTGGCTCTGATGAGTGAAGACATATTCAGGACCCTG 960 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 924 AACGAAGGCGCAGGGCTACAACATCTGGCTCTGATGAGTGAAGACATATTCAGGACCCTG 983 Query 961 AGAGAGATGAGGAAGAGGAGCAGTATTGGAGGATTCGACTTCATGCCTTCTCCTCCGCCT 1020 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 984 AGAGAGATGAGGAAGAGGAGCAGTATTGGAGGATTCGACTTCATGCCTTCTCCTCCGCCT 1043 Query 1021 ACTTACTACCAGAATCTCAAGAAACGGGTCGGCGACGTGCTCAGCGATGATCAGATCAAG 1080 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1044 ACTTACTACCAGAATCTCAAGAAACGGGTCGGCGACGTGCTCAGCGATGATCAGATCAAG 1103 Query 1081 GAGTGTGAGGAATTAGGGATTCTTGTAGACAGAGATGATCAAGGGACGTTGCTTCAAATC 1140 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1104 GAGTGTGAGGAATTAGGGATTCTTGTAGACAGAGATGATCAAGGGACGTTGCTTCAAATC 1163 Query 1141 TTCACAAAACCACTAGGTGACAGGCCGACGATATTTATAGAGATAATCCAGAGAGTAGGA 1200 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1164 TTCACAAAACCACTAGGTGACAGGCCGACGATATTTATAGAGATAATCCAGAGAGTAGGA 1223 Query 1201 TGCATGATGAAAGATGAGGAAGGGAAGGCTTACCAGAGTGGAGGATGTGGTGGTTTTGGC 1260 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1224 TGCATGATGAAAGATGAGGAAGGGAAGGCTTACCAGAGTGGAGGATGTGGTGGTTTTGGC 1283 Query 1261 AAAGGCAATTTCTCTGAGCTCTTCAAGTCCATTGAAGAATACGAAAAGACTCTTGAAGCC 1320 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1284 AAAGGCAATTTCTCTGAGCTCTTCAAGTCCATTGAAGAATACGAAAAGACTCTTGAAGCC 1343 Query 1321 AAACAGTTAGTGGGA 1335 ||||||||||||||| Sbjct 1344 AAACAGTTAGTGGGA 1358 At the time the invention was made, it would have been prima facie obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the teachings of Boudec et al using those of Hawkes et al, and GenBank Accession Number AF047834, and modify the nucleic acid encoding the Arabidopsis HPPD, such that the resultant nucleic acid encodes a protein comprising an amino acid substitution at the relative position 335. It would have been obvious to substitute the glutamic acid of with every other amino acid, including aspartic acid, lysine, or asparagine, thus arriving at an isolated nucleic acid and the encoded protein of the instant claims 1-4, 17-18 and 24. It would have been obvious to mutate any HPPD taught by Boudec et al, including the one from Arabidopsis thaliana. It would have been obvious to mutate the HPPD gene of Arabidopsis using the sequence information taught by GenBank Accession Number AF047834. Given the teachings of Hawkes et al, one would have expected the resultant HPPD protein to be enzymatically active, and to be “capable of increasing the tolerance to a plant” to at least one HPPD inhibiting herbicide (instant claim 24). Moreover, any properties of the resultant mutant HPPD will be inherent in its amino acid sequence. The Examiner notes that “A chemical composition and its properties are inseparable. Therefore, if the prior art teaches the identical chemical structure, the properties applicant discloses and/or claims are necessarily present.” In re Spada, 911 F.2d 705, 709, 15 USPQ2d 1655, 1658 (Fed. Cir. 1990); MPEP 2112.01. In the instant case, the chemical composition corresponds to the amino acid sequence of the mutant HPPD protein. It would have been obvious to obtain a chimeric gene comprising a coding sequence for said mutant HPPD, including wherein the gene comprises a plant-expressible promoter (instant claims 25 and 40). It would have been further obvious to introduce said nucleic acid, under the control of a plant-expressible promoter, into a plant, thus arriving at a plant with an increased tolerance to an HPPD inhibitor herbicide (instant claims 29, 30, 38, and 41). It would have been obvious to obtain a plant or seed comprising said nucleic acid, including wherein the plant is soybean, as taught by Hawkes (instant claims 32-37). It would have bene further obvious to use the resultant plant or seed in a method of controlling weeds by applying an HPPD inhibitor to said plant (instant claim 39). One would have been motivated to combine said teachings for the following reasons. First, one would have been motivated to mutate the amino acid at E335 due to its location between G334 and G336, the importance of both of which is taught by Boudec et al and both of which have been mutated by Boudec et al; and given that Boudec et al teach the importance of the entire C-terminal region of the enzyme, which includes E335, to herbicide tolerance. Second, Hawkes et al expressly teach substituting a position corresponding to E335 of the instant SEQ ID NO: 2 with every other amino acid. Given that Boudec et al and Hawkes et al successfully reduced their inventions to practice, given the importance of position E335 to herbicide tolerance, as taught by Hawkes et al, and given the teachings of Boudec et al, one would have had reasonable expectations of success. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 13. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of pre-AIA 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 – (b) the invention was patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country or in public use or on sale in this country, more than one year prior to the date of application for patent in the United States. 14. Claims 36 and 37 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b) as being anticipated by Boudec et al (US Patent No. 6,245,968). The claims are drawn to a seed of the plant of claim 33 or “the progeny” of that plant. Claim 33 is drawn to a plant “consisting essentially of plant cells,” said cells comprising the nucleic acid of claim 1. Neither claim 36 nor 37 limit the seed or the progeny by a filial generation, nor require that said seed or plant comprise the nucleic acid of claim 1. As a result, the claims will encompass any seed or plant, which may not comprise the nucleic acid of claim 1. Boudec et al disclose wild-type and transgenic tobacco plants and seeds, including wherein the plants exogenously express a mutant HPPD (Examples 6 and 9). Given the above claim interpretation, both, the wild-type and transgenic plants and seeds of Boudec et al will read on and anticipate the seed and progeny plants of the instant claims. Conclusion 15. No claims are allowed. 16. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MYKOLA V KOVALENKO whose telephone number is (571)272-6921. The examiner can normally be reached Mon.-Fri. 9:00-5:30 PST. 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, BRATISLAV STANKOVIC can be reached at (571)270-0305. 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. /MYKOLA V. KOVALENKO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1662