Appeal No. 2004-1935 Page 5
Application No. 09/308,403
alkali, then the insoluble cellulose was removed and the supernatant was neutralized.
See column 6, lines 13-32. These treatments are disclosed to produce a
“hemicellulosic material . . . rich in arabinoxylans and . . . substituted by phenolic acids.”
Column 2, lines 34-36 (see also column 1, line 46 to column 2, line 33). Greenshields
discloses that the soluble, hemicellulosic composition was then gelled by adding
horseradish peroxidase and hydrogen peroxide. Column 6, lines 34-40.
As the examiner noted, Greenshields does not teach in situ generation of the
hydrogen peroxide required by horseradish peroxidase. However, Crawford teaches
that “a continual source of hydrogen peroxide” can be generated “by including a
carbohydrate source such as glucose, galactose, or the like, with an appropriate
oxidase enzyme such as glucose oxidase, galactose oxidase, etc.” Column 6, lines 32-
40. Crawford also teaches that exogenously added hydrogen peroxide and in situ-
produced hydrogen peroxide are equivalents in a peroxidase-containing composition.
See the sentence bridging columns 10 and 11.
Thus, we agree with the examiner that those of ordinary skill in the art would
have found it obvious to modify Greenshields’ method and composition by substituting
an oxidase (e.g., glucose oxidase) and an oxidase substrate (e.g., glucose) for
Greenshields’ exogenously added hydrogen peroxide, with the expectation that the
oxidase would act on its substrate and produce hydrogen peroxide in situ and thereby
allow Greenshields’ peroxidase-catalyzed polymerization reaction to proceed.
Motivation to combine the references is provided by Crawford’s disclosure that the
oxidase/substrate combination provides a continuous source of hydrogen peroxide and
Crawford’s disclosure that addition of oxidase and substrate to a peroxidase-catalyzed
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