Appeal No. 1996-1080
Application No. 07/869,111
examples also suggest or direct the artisan to various
silylated and 9-oxime derivatives (see examples 3, 4 and 11).
Watanabe teaches various substituents at the 9-oxime position
that result in protection of that position during methylation
(see page 3). Accordingly, we agree with the examiner’s
position that substitution of the alkenyl and benzyl
substituents taught by Watanabe for the alkyl group
exemplified at the 9-position by Faubl would have been well
within the skill in the art.3 Both Faubl and Watanabe are
directed to antibiotics and methods of protecting various
substituents of erythromycin derivatives.
For the foregoing reasons, we determine that the examiner
has established a prima facie case of obviousness in view of
the reference evidence. As previously noted, appellants have
submitted three Declarations by Watanabe to rebut the
examiner’s evidence of obviousness. The Watanabe I
Declaration and Experiments 7 through 10 of the Watanabe II
Declaration have been submitted by appellants to rebut the
3Conversely, the silyl derivatives of the substituted 9-
oximes of Watanabe would have been well within the ordinary
skill in the art given the teaching in Kirk-Othmer of
conventional silylation of hydroxy substituents in
antibiotics.
11
Page: Previous 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007