Prosecution Insights
Prosecution Insights
Technology area: Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals
53 pending office actions • 28 art units • 45 examiners • 0 of 53 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 50 patents granted in the last 365 days
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill currently manages 50 pending office actions in the Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals technology area. These actions are distributed among 43 distinct examiners and 27 distinct art units. ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE is the busiest examiner, holding 3 busiest examiner pending actions. The 27 distinct art units indicate that the university's biotechnology and pharmaceutical research is reviewed by many technical groups.
With 43 distinct examiners for the 50 pending office actions, the workload is spread relatively evenly, with only a few examiners handling more than one case. This distribution means the university must navigate various individual examiner styles and interpretations across the 27 distinct art units. The 3 busiest examiner pending actions assigned to ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE represent a portion of the 50 pending office actions. Practitioners should coordinate across the 43 distinct examiners to ensure consistent prosecution outcomes.
The 27 distinct art units suggest that the portfolio touches on many specialized groups within the USPTO. Managing 50 pending office actions across these units requires an understanding of the specific technical standards applied by each group. Because the 43 distinct examiners are spread across 27 distinct art units, there is variety in the technical scrutiny applied to the applications. This structure requires a strategy that accounts for both individual examiner preferences and art unit trends.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 18 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date; the rest are excluded from the tile counts.
Every pending office action with a known statutory deadline, placed on a days-until-due axis. Dots left of Today are overdue; the further right, the more runway. Cases that share a deadline window stack vertically. 18 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date.
Difficulty is derived from the rejection statutes on the most recent pending office action. §101-driven and multi-statute cases are graded Hard; §112-only and obviousness-type double-patenting cases are graded Easy; everything else is Medium. "Unknown" means we have not yet parsed a statute for that office action.
| Bucket | Cases |
|---|---|
| §101 + other | 4 (8%) |
| §103 only | 13 (25%) |
| §102 only | 1 (2%) |
| §112 only | 5 (9%) |
| Double-patenting only | 1 (2%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 10 (19%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 19 (36%) |
How the docket's pending cases split across USPTO tech-center bands.
Manual office-action response work runs about 10 hours per case. The time-saved bands below show what IP Author's prosecution pipeline typically delivers — a conservative 20% on the low end, 35% in the middle, 50% on the high end.
| Examiner | Apps on this docket | Allow rate | Interview lift |
|---|---|---|---|
| ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE | 3 | 30.0% | +53.1% |
| NGUYEN, QUANG | 3 | 38.0% | +52.6% |
| CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 2 | 71.1% | +49.0% |
| MUI, CHRISTINE T | 2 | 78.3% | +19.9% |
| DONOHUE, SEAN R | 2 | 41.4% | +21.0% |
| SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 2 | 23.6% | +37.0% |
| RODZIWICZ, AARON M | 1 | 70.4% | +17.2% |
| KANG, TAE-SIK | 1 | 58.2% | +27.8% |
| ORTIZ, ADAM C | 1 | 65.9% | +34.6% |
| JACKSON, SHAWQUIA | 1 | 78.0% | -3.3% |
Multi-statute / §101-driven matters, or cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate under 30%. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16761876 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR CIRCULAR RNA MOLECULES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 103d overdue |
| 17775817 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR ENHANCED VIRTUAL CROSSMATCHING USING PHYSICAL-CROSSMATCH-OUTCOME-DATA-DERIVED MODEL | AUGER, NOAH ANDREW | 89d overdue |
| 16006460 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 60d overdue |
| 18438385 | BIFUNCTIONAL CHEMICAL EPIGENENTIC MODIFIERS AND METHODS OF USE | COPPINS, JANET L | 52d overdue |
| 17867135 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 44d overdue |
| 16428138 | Methods and Compositions for Treating Dystroglycanopathy Disorders | SINGH, ANOOP KUMAR | 44d overdue |
| 19100114 | INTRAVASCULAR DUAL FREQUENCY SONOTHROMBOLYSIS MEDIATED WITH MICROBUBBLES/NANODROPLETS | CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 43d overdue |
| 19169745 | FUNCTIONALIZED AROMATIC PHOSPHONIC ACIDS FOR DISPLAY AND SOLAR CELL APPLICATIONS | KANG, TAE-SIK | 33d |
Cases in front of an examiner whose interview lift is 10 percentage points or more — i.e. interviewed cases historically resolve more favorably than non-interviewed ones. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16761876 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR CIRCULAR RNA MOLECULES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 103d overdue |
| 16006460 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 60d overdue |
| 17867135 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 44d overdue |
| 19100114 | INTRAVASCULAR DUAL FREQUENCY SONOTHROMBOLYSIS MEDIATED WITH MICROBUBBLES/NANODROPLETS | CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 43d overdue |
| 19169745 | FUNCTIONALIZED AROMATIC PHOSPHONIC ACIDS FOR DISPLAY AND SOLAR CELL APPLICATIONS | KANG, TAE-SIK | 33d |
| 18720482 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR USING TRAINED MACHINE LEARNING MODEL INCLUDING AN ATTENTION MODULE TO ESTIMATE GESTATIONAL AGE FROM ULTRASOUND IMAGE DATA | CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 41d |
| 18558919 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS RELATED TO THE TREATMENT OF OCULAR DISEASES IN EQUINES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 46d |
| 17176561 | FLOW CELLS UTILIZING SURFACE-ATTACHED STRUCTURES, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS | MUI, CHRISTINE T | 76d |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 1631 | 6 |
| 3797 | 3 |
| 1616 | 2 |
| 1797 | 2 |
| 1615 | 2 |
| 1628 | 2 |
| 1619 | 2 |
| 1672 | 2 |
| 1632 | 2 |
| 1654 | 2 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19397315 | Ephemeral Substrates for Oyster Aquaculture | RODZIWICZ, AARON M | 3642 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 21, 2025 |
| 19169745 | FUNCTIONALIZED AROMATIC PHOSPHONIC ACIDS FOR DISPLAY AND SOLAR CELL APPLICATIONS | KANG, TAE-SIK | 1728 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | 33d | Pending | Apr 03, 2025 |
| 19096901 | BASSINET | ORTIZ, ADAM C | 3673 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 01, 2025 |
| 19100114 | INTRAVASCULAR DUAL FREQUENCY SONOTHROMBOLYSIS MEDIATED WITH MICROBUBBLES/NANODROPLETS | CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 3797 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 43d overdue | Pending | Jan 30, 2025 |
| 18869126 | NOVEL HEPATOSELECTIVE POLYADENYLATING POLYMERASES INHIBITORS AND THEIR METHOD OF USE | JACKSON, SHAWQUIA | 1626 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 25, 2024 |
| 18866958 | WEARABLE APPARATUS FOR DEEP TISSUE SENSING AND DIGITAL AUTOMATION OF DRUG DELIVERY | SEBASTIAN, KAITLYN E | 3797 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | 34d | Pending | Nov 18, 2024 |
| 18853592 | ADAPTIVE PATCHES FOR DYNAMIC ORGANS | ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE | — | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 02, 2024 |
| 18884822 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR INHIBITING PATHOGEN INFECTION | FOLEY, SHANON A | — | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 13, 2024 |
| 18818163 | BENZOYLGLYCINE DERIVATIVES AND METHODS OF MAKING AND USING SAME | COUGHLIN, MATTHEW P | — | §112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 28, 2024 |
| 18836156 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR ENHANCED DRUG LOADING OF LONG-ACTING IN SITU FORMING IMPLANTS AND USES THEREOF | ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE | 1616 | §102§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 06, 2024 |
| 18720482 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR USING TRAINED MACHINE LEARNING MODEL INCLUDING AN ATTENTION MODULE TO ESTIMATE GESTATIONAL AGE FROM ULTRASOUND IMAGE DATA | CHOI, YOUNHEE JEON | 3797 | §112 | Final Rejection | 41d | Pending | Jun 14, 2024 |
| 18674521 | ENZYMATIC SYNTHESIS OF HOMOGENEOUS CHONDROITIN SULFATE OLIGOSACCHARIDES | OLSON, ANDREA STEFFEL | 1693 | §102§103§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 24, 2024 |
| 18672675 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR NUCLEIC ACID PURIFICATION USING FLOW CELLS WITH ACTUATED SURFACE-ATTACHED STRUCTURES | MUI, CHRISTINE T | 1797 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 23, 2024 |
| 18706869 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR TREATING CANCER VIA PTP1B INHIBITION | CHICKS, ASHLI ARIANA | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 02, 2024 |
| 18691748 | MODIFIED PROTEIN DISULFIDE ISOMERASE AND USES THEREOF | NOAKES, SUZANNE MARIE | 1656 | §102§112 | Final Rejection | 50d | Pending | Mar 13, 2024 |
| 18690230 | IODIDE NANOPARTICLES AND COMPOSITIONS OF METHODS OF USE THEREOF | DONOHUE, SEAN R | — | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 07, 2024 |
| 18591127 | Methods, Systems and Devices for Post-Fabrication Drug Loading | HELM, CARALYNNE E | 1615 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 29, 2024 |
| 18688256 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR INHIBITING FIBROSIS AND SCARRING | CHERNYSHEV, OLGA N | — | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 29, 2024 |
| 18438385 | BIFUNCTIONAL CHEMICAL EPIGENENTIC MODIFIERS AND METHODS OF USE | COPPINS, JANET L | 1628 | §103§112Other | Final Rejection | 52d overdue | Pending | Feb 09, 2024 |
| 18578434 | LABELED COMPOUNDS AND CALCIUM SENSING RECEPTOR LIGANDS FOR IMAGING AND USES THEREOF | DONOHUE, SEAN R | — | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 11, 2024 |
| 18409276 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR ACTIVATION OF T CELLS USING NANOPARTICLES CONJUGATED WITH MULTIPLE LIGANDS FOR BINDING RECEPTORS ON T CELLS | GODDARD, LAURA B | — | §102§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 10, 2024 |
| 18391998 | POLYMERIC IMPLANTS WITH HIGH DRUG LOADING AND LONG-ACTING DRUG RELEASE AND METHODS OF MAKING THE SAME | MITCHELL, EDWIN COLEMAN | 1619 | §103§112DP | Final Rejection | 96d overdue | Pending | Dec 21, 2023 |
| 18572427 | DETECTION OF A TARGET VIRUS VIA SURFACE ENHANCED RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY (SERS) USING A PEPTIDE-MODIFIED NANOSTRUCTURED METAL | KINSEY WHITE, NICOLE ERIN | 1672 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2023 |
| 18571985 | INVERTED CHIMERIC siRNA MOLECULES AND METHODS OF USE THEREOF | POLIAKOVA-GEORGAN, EKATERINA | 1637 | §102§103DP | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 19, 2023 |
| 18571412 | INJECTABLE, BIODEGRADABLE AND REMOVABLE POLYMER BASED DRUG SUSPENSION FOR ULTRA-LONG-ACTING DRUG DELIVERY | BARSKY, JARED | 1628 | §102§103§112Other | Non-Final OA | 34d | Pending | Dec 18, 2023 |
| 16963023 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR INHIBITION OF INNATE IMMUNE RESPONSE ASSOCIATED WITH AAV TRANSDUCTION | CORDAS, EMILY ANN | 1632 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 15, 2023 |
| 18388359 | METHOD FOR EMULSIFICATION USING IONIC FLUX | NILAND, PATRICK DENNIS | 1763 | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 09, 2023 |
| 18558919 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS RELATED TO THE TREATMENT OF OCULAR DISEASES IN EQUINES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 1631 | §102§103§112 | Final Rejection | 46d | Pending | Nov 03, 2023 |
| 18558886 | USE OF CHEMICAL EPIGENETIC MODIFIERS TO MODULATE GENE EXPRESSION FROM VECTORS | ARIETI, RUTH SOPHIA | 1635 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 03, 2023 |
| 18553312 | METHODS FOR ASSESSING PROLIFERATION AND ANTI-FOLATE THERAPEUTIC RESPONSE | VANN-OJUEKAIYE, KENDRA RAYCHELL | 1682 | §101§103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 29, 2023 |
| 18551959 | MODIFIED PEPTIDOMIMETICS AND METHODS OF USE | BEANE, RANDALL L | 1654 | §101§102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 22, 2023 |
| 18239036 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | PARK, HAEJIN S | 1614 | §103DPOther | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Aug 28, 2023 |
| 18334530 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR CIRCULAR RNA MOLECULES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 1631 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 14, 2023 |
| 18265797 | METHOD FOR MEASUREMENT IN BIOSENSORS | CONSTANTINE, CHARLES Z | 1657 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 07, 2023 |
| 18039387 | ENGINEERED CELLS FUNCTIONALIZED WITH IMMUNE CHECKPOINT MOLECULES AND USES THEREOF | KIM, TAEYOON | 1631 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 30, 2023 |
| 18322823 | D-beta-HYDROXYBUTYRATE DEHYDROGENASES (BHBDhs) AND THEIR USE FOR KETONE MONITORING | SINGH, SATYENDRA K | 1657 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 24, 2023 |
| 17997791 | MODIFIED ADENO-ASSOCIATED VIRUS VECTORS THAT EVADE NEUTRALIZING ANTIBODIES AND USES THEREOF | CORNELIUS, CLAIRE ADRIENNE | 1672 | §101§102§103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 02, 2022 |
| 17801705 | EUTECTIC BASED ANESTHETIC COMPOSITIONS AND APPLICATIONS THEREOF | ARMSTRONG, SUSANNAH SIPPLE | 1616 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 23, 2022 |
| 17821371 | Functionalized Mesoporous Silica via an Aminosilane Surfactant Ion Exchange Reaction: Controlled Scaffold Design and Nitric Oxide Release | WHEELER, THURMAN MICHAEL | 1619 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Aug 22, 2022 |
| 17759767 | NANOMATERIALS FOR TARGETED TREATMENT OF PULMONARY TISSUE | BOWLES, DAVID PAUL | 1654 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 29, 2022 |
| 17759757 | NANOMATERIALS FOR TARGETED TREATMENT AND IMAGING OF ANEURYSMAL MICROENVIRONMENT | FISCHER, JOSEPH | 1658 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 29, 2022 |
| 17867135 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 1631 | §103§112DP | Final Rejection | 44d overdue | Pending | Jul 18, 2022 |
| 17775817 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR ENHANCED VIRTUAL CROSSMATCHING USING PHYSICAL-CROSSMATCH-OUTCOME-DATA-DERIVED MODEL | AUGER, NOAH ANDREW | 1687 | §101§103§112 | Final Rejection | 89d overdue | Pending | May 10, 2022 |
| 17775222 | REACTIVE POLYAMIDEIMIDE OLIGOMERS, METHODS, AND ARTICLES | QIAO, HUIHONG | 1700 | §103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 06, 2022 |
| 17775221 | REACTIVE OLIGOMERS, ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING METHODS, AND ARTICLES THEREOF | LISTVOYB, GREGORY | 1765 | §103 | Final Rejection | 40d | Pending | May 06, 2022 |
| 17769917 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR CANCER TREATMENT USING NANOPARTICLES CONJUGATED WITH MULTIPLE LIGANDS FOR BINDING RECEPTORS ON NK CELLS | CANELLA, KAREN A | 1643 | §112 | Final Rejection | 28d | Pending | Apr 18, 2022 |
| 17621303 | IN SITU RECRUITMENT, REPROGRAMMING, AND RELEASE OF CAR-T CELLS | NATARAJAN, MEERA | 1643 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 21, 2021 |
| 17398982 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | HUHN, RICHARD A | 1764 | §112 | Non-Final OA | 69d | Pending | Aug 10, 2021 |
| 17424109 | SALT NANOPARTICLES AND COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS OF USE THEREOF | NGUYEN, NGOC-ANH THI | 1615 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 19, 2021 |
| 17176561 | FLOW CELLS UTILIZING SURFACE-ATTACHED STRUCTURES, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS | MUI, CHRISTINE T | 1797 | §103 | Final Rejection | 76d | Pending | Feb 16, 2021 |
| 16761876 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR CIRCULAR RNA MOLECULES | NGUYEN, QUANG | 1631 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | 103d overdue | Pending | May 06, 2020 |
| 16428138 | Methods and Compositions for Treating Dystroglycanopathy Disorders | SINGH, ANOOP KUMAR | 1632 | §103§112Other | Final Rejection | 44d overdue | Pending | May 31, 2019 |
| 16006460 | PATCH GRAFT COMPOSITIONS FOR CELL ENGRAFTMENT | SCHUBERG, LAURA J | 1631 | §103Other | Non-Final OA | 60d overdue | Pending | Jun 12, 2018 |
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