By Godson Umejiego, Bureau Chief, The Americas
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a final rule updating its regulations concerning patent application disclosures that contain nucleotide and/or amino acid sequences. The updated regulations reflect the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) recently adopting a new version of its Standard ST.26. The final rule, effective Saturday, July 1, also corrects a grammatical oversight in a definition.
In addition to simplifying the process for applicants filing in multiple countries, ST.26 requires submission of a single-sequence listing in eXtensible Mark-up Language (XML). The XML format provides the public with better preservation, accessibility, and sorting of the submitted sequence data. Among other improvements, the new version of ST.26 clarifies requirements, improves descriptions, and corrects editorial mistakes.
