Insights

Energetics and structure of alanine-rich α-helices via adaptive steered molecular dynamics

by Co-author Hailey R. Bureau, Ph.D. | Biophysical Journal

David A. Bilodeau named to Best Lawyers® list

by | BSKB News

Birch, Stewart, Kolasch & Birch, LLP is pleased to announce that David A. Bilodeau has been included in this Edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Printed publications: an evolving doctrine

by Eugene T. Perez | Printed publications: an evolving doctrine

While the PTAB’s decision in Hulu provides some guidance for post-grant proceedings, there is still no bright-line rule as to what constitutes a “printed publication”. Eugene Perez of Birch Stewart Kolasch Birch examines current case rulings.

BSKB ASSISTS CLIENT IN SUCCESSFUL IPR CHALLENGES TO BIOPHARMACEUTICAL PATENTS FOR TREATING POMPE DISEASE

by Gerald M. Murphy, Jr. | BSKB News

BSKB assists client in successful IPR Challenges to Biopharmaceutical Patents for Treating Pompe Disease

Washington, D.C. NFL Team Loses Race to the Trademark Office: Does it Matter?

by Michael. T Smith | IPWatchDog

In surveys throughout the Washington, D.C. metro area, three possible replacement names have emerged as favorites among the fans: Warriors, Red Wolves, and Redtails. Armed with the knowledge of the name change and the relative popularity of the possible replacement names, two enterprising individuals have applied to obtain a federal trademark registration for the marks WARRIORS, WASHINGTON RED WOLVES, and WASHINGTON REDTAILS, respectively. Neither applicant appears to be connected to the owners of the Washington D.C. professional football team.

Could good intentions lead to future danger?

by MaryAnne Armstrong, Ph.D. | LSIPR

MaryAnne Armstrong, Ph.D. discusses the potential risks to IP rights with open-access to technology, medicines and devices in the fight against COVID-19 in the latest issue of LSIPR.

The Importance of Correctly Identifying Goods and Services

by Michael T. Smith | World IP Review

Trademark rights are acquired through use of a mark in commerce. Applicants must correctly identify

Indefinite claims at the PTAB

by Chad M. Rink and Hailey R. Bureau, Ph.D. | World Intellectual Property Review

Chad Rink and Hailey Bureau, Ph.D. talk about indefinite claims at the PTAB and alternative routes in WIPR- Issue 1.

The relative stability of trpzip1 and its mutants determined by computation and experiment

by Hailey R. Bureau, Stephen Quirk and Rigoberto Hernandez | RSC Advances

Six mutants of the tryptophan zipper peptide trpzip1 have been computationally and experimentally characterized. We determine the varying roles in secondary structure stability of specific residues through a mutation assay. Four of the mutations directly effect the Trp–Trp interactions and two of the mutations target the salt bridge between Glu5 and Lys8. CD spectra and thermal unfolding are used to determine the secondary structure and stability of the mutants compared to the wildtype peptide. Adaptive steered molecular dynamics has been used to obtain the energetics of the unfolding pathways of the mutations. The hydrogen bonding patterns and side-chain interactions over the course of unfolding have also been calculated and compared to wildtype trpzip1. The key finding from this work is the importance of a stabilizing non-native salt bridge pair present in the K8L mutation.

Antibody patents: Danger ahead for biologics

by John H. Heithaus and Gerald M. Murphy | Life Science IP Review

John Heithaus and Gerald Murphy discuss the evolution of antibody written description standards at the USPTO.  Read more of their article featured in Life Science IP Review.

Overcoming patent rejection

by MaryAnne Armstrong, P.h. D & Hailey Bureau P.h. D | WIPR

The USPTO's interpretations of four Federal Circuit decisions can be summarized into three key points that help with overcoming rejections under 35 USC § 101, as MaryAnne Armstrong and Hailey Bureau of Birch, Stewart, Kolasch & Birch explain.

Case Law as a Guide to Trademark Ownership, Licensing and Enforcement

by Michael T. Smith | World Trademark Review

Under common law, ownership is conferred through first use of a trademark– including use by a licensee. Recent case law can help to determine which party has the right to enforce the licensed mark where an infringement suit arises.

The Importance of Correctly Identifying Goods and Services

by Michael T. Smith | World Trademark Review

Trademark rights are acquired through use of a mark in commerce. Applicants must correctly identify the goods and services with which their mark is intended for registration or risk refusal or cancellation.

Case Law Shines a Light on Internet Evidence at Motion to Dismiss Stage

by Lynde F. Herzbach | World Trademark Review

Assessing the relevance of internet evidence can be a daunting task for rights holders. However, if submitted accurately at the earliest stages, such evidence may sway infringement proceedings.

Mutational Analysis of Neuropeptide Y Reveals Unusual Thermal Stability Linked to Higher-Order Self-Association

by Hailey Bureau, Stephen Quirk, Mandi M. Hopkins, Ryan J. Lusk, Caley Allen, Rigoberto Hernandez and David L. Bain | ACS Omega

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a 36-residue peptide, abundant in the central and peripheral nervous system. The peptide interacts with membrane-bound receptors to control processes such as food intake, vasoconstriction, and memory retention. The N-terminal polyproline sequence of NPY folds back onto a C-terminal α-helix to form a hairpin structure. The hairpin undergoes transient unfolding to allow the monomer to interact with its target membranes and receptors and to form reversible dimers in solution. Using computational, functional, and biophysical approaches, we characterized the role of two conserved tyrosines (Y20 and Y27) located within the hydrophobic core of the hairpin fold. Successive mutation of the tyrosines to more hydrophobic phenylalanines increased the thermal stability of NPY and reduced functional activity, consistent with computational studies predicting a more stable hairpin structure. However, mutant stability was high relative to wild-type: melting temperatures increased by approximately 20 °C for the single mutants (Y20F and Y27F) and by 30 °C for the double mutant (Y20F + Y27F). These findings suggested that the mutations were not just simply enhancing hairpin structure stability, but might also be driving self-association to dimer. Using analytical ultracentrifugation, we determined that the mutations indeed increased self-association, but shifted the equilibrium toward hexamer-like species. Notably, these latter species were not unique to the NPY mutants, but were found to preexist at low levels in the wild-type population. Collectively, the findings indicate that NPY self-association is more complex than previously recognized and that the ensemble of NPY quaternary states is tunable by modulating hairpin hydrophobicity.

Prior Art Takes New Shapes: Relying on Non-traditional Prior Art to Invalidate a Patent

by MaryAnne Armstrong, Ph.D. | Pharmaceutical Patent Analyst

When we teach kids today about Internet privacy, one of the things that is emphasized is that once something has been posted on the Internet, that posting seemingly takes on a life of its own, with an eternal existence, even if the original poster deletes the posting. Unfortunately, companies have not learned this lesson and temporal items, such as press releases and Internet publications, can come back to haunt a patent owner in the form of invalidating prior art for a post-grant review. The following paragraphs consider ‘non-traditional’ prior art, for example, press releases, Internet publications, drug labels among others, and examine considerations in determining whether such non-traditional prior art can be used as a basis for invalidating a patent.

Written Description: A State of Uncertainty

by John Bailey, John Heithaus, and Ohireime Eromosele | World Intellectual Property Review

As the bounds of antibody written description have yet to be clarified in the US, what can applicants do to protect their inventions?

Exposure to Enhanced Damages After Halo

by Michael K. Mutter and Shawn A. Hamidinia, Ph.D. | World Intellectual Property Review

The Halo decision on wilful patent infringement has made it desirable to accumulate evidence of good faith at the time of conduct in order to avoid enhanced damages.

Halo: A Fresh Approach to Enhanced Damages

by Michael K. Mutter and Shawn A. Hamidinia, Ph.D. | World Intellectual Property Review

A US Supreme Court ruling has changed the landscape for determining damages in cases of wilful patent infringement, as explained in the first edition of a two-part article series.

Halo Returns Law of Enhanced Damages to Pre-Seagate Standard

by Michael K. Mutter | BSKB

On Monday, June 13, 2016, in Halo Electronics, Inc. v. Pulse Electronics, Inc., 579 U.S. _____; No. 14-1513, the Supreme Court turned back the clock on increased damages under 35 U.S.C. § 284, ruling that the test adopted in In re Seagate Technology, L.L.C., 497 F. 3d 1360 (Fed. Cir. 2007) “unduly confines the ability of the district courts to exercise the discretion conferred to them.”