Appeal No. 2003-1678 Page 3
Application No. 08/722,659
extended the time needed to replace the same amount of heparin/
heparan sulfate. Inflammatory responses would be significantly
diminished by a slow rate of replacement of cell surface heparin/heparan
sulfate. Appropriate administration of heparinase could extend the
duration of diminished inflammatory response.
Specification, pages 14 -15.
The claimed invention is directed specifically to decreasing localized
inflammatory responses which arise from an ischemia/reperfusion injury in a tissue of a
patient. As explained in the specification, ischemia/reperfusion injury can occur from
myocardial infarction, shock, stroke, organ transplantation, and cardiopulmonary
bypass surgery. Id., page 1. To this end, claim 1 requires that a patient suffering from
an ischemia/reperfusion injury be intravascularly administered heparinase enzyme in an
"effective amount sufficient to decrease neutrophil transmigration through activated
endothelium and basement membrane of said vasculature which decreases said
localized inflammatory response arising from an ischemia/reperfusion injury."
Examples 5 and 6 of the specification are stated to establish treatment of endothelial
cell layers and basement membranes with heparinase serves to inhibit neutrophil
extravasation. Examples 7 and 8 of the specification report results obtained from
treating rats and rabbits respectively with heparinase following ischemia/reperfusion
injury.
Discussion
1. Separate Argument of Claims.
Appellants state "Claims 1-7 and 18-19 stand or fall together." Appeal Brief,
page 6. Accordingly, we shall limit our consideration of the issues raised in this appeal
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