Appeal No. 1996-3550
Application 08/218,165
IV. Claims 1, 3, 5, 7, 12 and 14 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as anticipated by
Hatanaka.
V. Claims 1, 3, 5, 7, 12 and 14 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as anticipated by Olías.
VI. Claims 1, 2, 5, 7, 8 and 11 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as anticipated by Muller.
VII. Claims 1 through 37 under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as unpatentable over Pascal,
Sekiya II, Olías, Gardner, Hatanaka, Sekiya, Dictionary of Gardening and Sigma.
DISCUSSION
Green note compounds are organoleptic aliphatic aldehydes and alcohols
responsible for the fresh, green aroma of many leaves, vegetables and fruits. The
constituents of green note compounds can include trans-2-hexenal, trans-2-hexenol, cis-3-
hexenal and cis-3-hexen-1-ol, and the isolated or synthesized compounds are widely used
in the food and cosmetic industries to sharpen and enhance the flavor and/or fragrance of
many products. According to the specification,
Green note compounds . . . have been obtained by steam distillation of plant
material followed by fractional distillation . . . green note compounds also
have been biosynthetically produced . . . The biosynthetic reaction involving
the unsaturated C-6 hydroperoxydismutation of linolenic acid is carried out
using a series of enzymatic steps. In particular, lipoxygenase forms a
hydroperoxide moiety at a double bond of linolenic acid . . . hydroperoxide
lyase cleaves the hydroperoxide to produce a C-6 unsaturated aldehyde, in
particular, cis-3-hexen-1-al. Then, aldehyde isomerase, when present in the
plant material and under certain conditions, catalyzes the formation of a
trans-2-hexenal from the cis-3-hexen-1-al. Cis-3-hexen-1-ol and other green
note alcohols are formed by the action of alcohol dehydrogenase, which
reduces the aldehydes to alcohols (specification, pages 1 and 2).
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