DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claims 1-6 are pending and examined on the merits.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because it 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.
In particular, the specification includes a browser-executable code in paragraph [0068], specifically in the second line of the paragraph.
Claim Objections
Claims 4-6 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 4 is objected to because the recitation “produces siderophore” is not grammatically correct. The recitation should be replaced with “produces a siderophore” or “produces siderophores.”
Additionally, claim 4 is objected to because the claim does not end with a period, instead ending with a semi-colon.
Claim 5 is objected to because the recitation “produces auxin” is not grammatically correct. The recitation should be replaced with “produces an auxin” or “produces auxins.”
Claim 6 is objected to because the recitation “solublizes” is a misspelling of the word “solubilizes.”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention.
The organism, Raoultella ornithinolytica FL19 strain deposited under CGMCC No. 29044, is recited in the claims, and thus is essential to the claimed invention. Since the microorganism is essential to the claimed invention, it must be obtainable by a repeatable method set forth in the specification or otherwise readily available to the public. If the microorganism is not so obtainable or available, the requirements of 35 U.S.C. § 112 may be satisfied by a deposit of the biological material.
The specification does not disclose a repeatable process to obtain the microorganism, and it is not apparent if the biological material is readily available to the public. It noted that the strain has been deposited under the Budapest Treaty (paragraph [0079] of specification disclosing the deposit; Certificate of Receipt of Deposition of Biological Material for patent purposes under Budapest Treaty filed in the application on November 26, 2024), but there is no indication in the specification as to public availability of the strain.
Since the deposit was made under the Budapest Treaty, then an affidavit or declaration by applicant, or a statement by an attorney of record over his or her signature and registration number, stating that the specific strain has been deposited under the Budapest Treaty and that the specific strain will be irrevocably and without restriction or condition released to the public upon the issuance of a patent, would satisfy the deposit requirement made herein.
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.
Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Liu (Journal of Fungi. 2024. 10: 386. Including Supplementary Material. Published May 27, 2024), as evidenced by Lambrecht (Trends in Microbiology. 2000. 8(7): 298-300).
Liu discloses that a bacterial strain referred to as FL19 promotes mycelial growth by producing indole-3-acetic acid, solubilizing phosphate, and producing siderophores, suggesting its role in regulating growth and development in Polyporus umbellatus (abstract). In particular, Liu discloses co-culturing the FL19 bacteria or the combined bacterial liquid of the FL19 strain with Polyporus umbellatus mycelium (page 4, first full paragraph). See also page 8, second paragraph which discloses the co-culturing of P. umbellatus mycelia with the FL19 strain as a single isolate of bacteria, for 20 days. This is directed to administering to P. umbellatus mycelium a microbial agent comprising the FL19 strain. The experiments found that the FL19 strain enhanced the growth of mycelium (page 7, fifth paragraph; Table S7 on page 10 of the Supplementary Material; page 8, third paragraph; Figure 3b on page 8). Additionally, Liu identified the FL19 strain as Raoultella sp., specifically Raoultella ornithinolytica (page 7, second-to-last paragraph; Table S9 on page 12 of the Supplementary Material). Thus, the FL19 strain is directed to the claimed Raoultella ornithinolytica strain having a strain number of FL19. Since the growth of the P. umbellatus mycelium is promoted/enhanced, then Liu anticipates instant claim 1.
Regarding instant claims 2 and 3, for the co-culture experiment, Liu explains that the bacteria (i.e., FL19 strain) or the combined bacterial liquid were cultured overnight in LB medium, and the bacteria or combined bacterial liquid were spread on a plate that includes disks derived from P. umbellatus mycelium (page 4, first full paragraph). The cultured FL19 bacteria or the cultured combined bacterial liquid of the FL19 strain is directed to a microbial agent comprising the R. ornithinolytica strain FL19 and further comprising a culture of the strain, the culture being a substance obtained by culturing the FL19 strain in a microorganism medium (the LB medium). Therefore, instant claim 2 is anticipated. The cultured FL19 bacteria or the cultured combined bacterial liquid of the FL19 strain inherently comprises metabolites of the FL19 strain. Therefore, instant claim 3 is anticipated.
Regarding instant claim 4, as pointed out above, the FL19 strain produces siderophores (abstract). See also page 7, last paragraph, Table S10 on page 13 of the Supplementary Material, and Figure S1 on page 16 of the Supplementary Material. Therefore, instant claim 4 is anticipated.
Regarding instant claim 5, as pointed out above, the FL19 strain produces indole-3-acetic acid (abstract). See also page 7, last paragraph, Table S10 on page 13 of the Supplementary Material, and Figure S1 on page 16 of the Supplementary Material. As evidenced by Lambrecht, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) is an auxin (page 298, left column). Therefore, instant claim 5 is anticipated.
Regarding instant claim 6, as pointed out above, the FL19 strain solubilizes phosphate (abstract). See also page 7, last paragraph, and Figure S1 on page 16 of the Supplementary Material. Therefore, instant claim 6 is anticipated.
Conclusion
No claims are allowed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUSAN EMILY FERNANDEZ whose telephone number is (571)272-3444. The examiner can normally be reached 10:30am - 7pm.
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, Melenie Gordon can be reached at 571-272-8037. 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.
Sef
/SUSAN E. FERNANDEZ/ Examiner, Art Unit 1651
Prosecution Insights