Appeal No. 95-4692
Application 08/141,316
the genus Nocardia, over those listed in the ‘227 patent,
because ML-236B (compactin) can be present in the reaction
mixture at a much higher concentration. Terahara ‘859, col. 2
1, line 63- col. 2, line 8. The ATCC catalogue provides a
listing of microorganisms within the collection which include,
inter alia, Amycolata autotropica, ATCC No. 35204, and
Saccharothrix australensis, ATCC No. 31497.
It is the examiner’s position that:
It would have been obvious at the time the
invention was made for one of ordinary skill in
the art to apply the teachings of Terehara [sic,
Terahara] and hydroxylyze other known
anticholesterolemic compounds (which are
structural analogs of compactin) for the
medicinal benefits taught by Terehara [sic].
* * *
In fact, it would be [sic, would have been]
a matter of judicious choice and thus obvious to
the skilled artisan to select other
microorganisms which would work in the reference
[sic, referenced] process. The teachings of the
reference are so broad that they would have to
be considered general teachings as the reference
teaches a multitude of microorganisms capable of
such hydroxylation reactions. Given this
2According to Terahara, the ML-236B compound possesses
antifungal and antibiotic properties. Terahara ‘859, col. 2,
lines 5-8.
8
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