throbber

`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`_____________________________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`_____________________________
`
`LIQUIDIA TECHNOLOGIES, INC.,
`Petitioner,
`
`v.
`
`UNITED THERAPEUTICS CORPORATION,
`Patent Owner.
`_____________________________
`
`Case No. IPR2020-00770 –
`Patent No. 9,604,901
`_____________________________
`
`DECLARATION OF RODOLFO PINAL, PH.D.
`SUPPORTING UNITED THERAPEUTIC CORPORATION’S
`PATENT OWNER RESPONSE
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
` Page
`
`I. 
`II. 
`III. 
`IV. 
`V. 
`
`QUALIFICATIONS ............................................................................................ 1 
`SCOPE OF WORK ............................................................................................. 4 
`SUMMARY OF OPINIONS .................................................................................. 5 
`LEGAL PRINCIPLES.......................................................................................... 7 
`OVERVIEW OF THE ’901 PATENT ..................................................................... 8 
`Claims of the ’901 Patent .................................................................. 9 

`Prosecution Histories ...................................................................... 10 

`1.  The Examiner Already Considered All of Liquidia’s Prior Art
`During Prosecution .......................................................................... 10 
`2.  Examiner Valenrod Considered the Full Record of the ’393
`IPR During Prosecution .................................................................. 15 
`3.  The ’393 IPR Final Written Decision is Not Material to the
`Patentability of the Challenged Patent Claims ................................ 17 
`THE LEVEL OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART ............................................... 24 
`VI. 
`VII.  CLAIM TERMS ............................................................................................... 34 
`“Pharmaceutical Product” ............................................................... 35 

`“Pharmaceutical Batch” .................................................................. 37 

`“A Salt Treprostinil” ....................................................................... 40 

`“Storing” and “Storage” .................................................................. 40 

`VIII.  DR. WINKLER’S GROUNDS LACK CREDIBLE BASES, IGNORE CLAIM
`LIMITATIONS, AND MISCONSTRUE THE ASSERTED ART ............................................ 42 
`  Misguided Focus on General Syntheses of Treprostinil ................. 42 
`Lack of Support for Conclusions .................................................... 52 

`1.  Phares Does Not Render Obvious Claims 1-9 of the ’901
`Patent. .............................................................................................. 53 
`2.  Moriarty and Phares Do Not Render Obvious Claims 1-9 of the
`’901 Patent. ....................................................................................108 
`Further Considerations of Process Impurities ...............................132 

`CONCLUDING STATEMENTS ........................................................................ 138 
`APPENDIX – LIST OF EXHIBITS ................................................................... 139 
`
`IX. 
`X. 
`
`
`-i-
`
`
`

`

`
`
`I, Rodolfo Pinal, declare as follows:
`
`
`
`I am the same Rodolfo Pinal that submitted the declaration marked as
`
`Exhibit 2002 in this proceeding.
`
`I. QUALIFICATIONS
`
`
`
`I am currently Associate Professor in the Department of Industrial and
`
`Physical Pharmacy at Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana, where I have
`
`been teaching since 2003. I also serve as Director of the NSF-I/UCRC Purdue
`
`Dane O. Kildsig Center for Pharmaceutical Processing Research (CPPR), a
`
`position I have held since 2005. Since 2016, I have served as Director of Graduate
`
`Studies in the Department of Industrial and Physical Pharmacy at Purdue. I am also
`
`a member of the Faculty Senate at Purdue.
`
`
`
`I received my Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in Pharmaceutical
`
`Sciences with a concentration in Physical Chemistry and have over 30 years of
`
`experience studying formulation science, specifically on aspects pertaining to
`
`formulations for pharmaceutical composition and pharmaceutical product
`
`development.
`
`
`
`Prior to joining academia, I gained over thirteen years of industry
`
`experience in pharmaceutical research and development as a scientist with
`
`Hoffman-La Roche. From 1990-1993, I served as a Research Associate and then as
`
`a Senior Scientist in the pre-formulation group. During this time, my work focused
`
`-1-
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`on the physiochemical characterization of new chemical entities (i.e., drug
`
`candidates), including developing stability-indicating methods, stability screening
`
`of drug candidates, photodegradation and drug-excipient compatibility studies, and
`
`solubility/solubilization and partitioning studies.
`
`
`
`From 1993-1997, I served as a Principal Scientist in the Sterile
`
`Dosage Forms group at Roche. In this role, I developed injectable formulations for
`
`new and investigational drug products. I was responsible for developing
`
`formulations for use in clinical trials, development of HPLC methods for assaying
`
`potency and stability of the active compound as well as pharmaceutical
`
`compositions intended for injection. I was also responsible for writing the
`
`directions for manufacturing clinical batches in the cGMP suite and for supervising
`
`the sterile suite operators during the manufacture of the resulting pharmaceutical
`
`products.
`
`
`
`From 1997-2003, I served as Principal Scientist and then a Research
`
`Leader in the Solid-State Pharmaceutics group at Roche, which was part of the oral
`
`dosage forms development group. In this role, I was responsible for identifying and
`
`devising methods for the measurement and monitoring of physical
`
`properties/parameters critical for the development of a given specific
`
`pharmaceutical product or process. I also worked extensively with process
`
`chemists from the Chemical Synthesis Department “Kilo Lab” at the company’s
`
`-2-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`site in New Jersey, as well as with process chemists from the industrial production
`
`site located in South Carolina.
`
`
`
`I have first-hand industrial experience in the scale-up process for
`
`making APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients). The laboratory under my
`
`supervision was responsible for the solid-state characterization of every batch of
`
`API generated at the New Jersey facility during the scale up of the synthesis. This
`
`responsibility extended to API batches produced at other sites but utilized during
`
`research and development at the New Jersey plant. The solid-state characterization
`
`work performed in my laboratory included crystal form and polymorphism,
`
`covering thermodynamic vs. kinetic stability, hygroscopicity, crystal morphology,
`
`particle size, solvates, hydrates, etc. A quick description of part of my
`
`responsibilities is as follows. As process (Kilo Lab) chemists began to work on
`
`replacing the synthetic process of APIs originally used by (drug discovery)
`
`medicinal chemists, toward one suitable for large scale production, they sent
`
`samples of their produced batches to me. My laboratory performed the solid-state
`
`characterization work required and convey the information to the Kilo Lab.
`
`Through an iterative process, the two groups would find the different polymorphs
`
`of the API, establish the stability relationship among them, and also establish the
`
`specifications for crystal morphology, particle size among the relevant attributes
`
`necessary for downstream processing. I was responsible for writing the sections
`
`-3-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`pertaining to crystal polymorphism and particle morphology included in NDA and
`
`IND submissions to the FDA.
`
`
`
`A listing of my credentials and publications was previously provided
`
`as Exhibit 2003. See also EX2002, ¶¶1-12.
`
`II. SCOPE OF WORK
`
`
`
`I understand that the Board has instituted a petition for Inter Partes
`
`Review of U.S. Patent No. 9,604,901 (IPR2020-00770). I understand the petition
`
`was filed on behalf of Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (“Liquidia”). I understand the
`
`challenged patent is currently assigned to United Therapeutics Corporation (“UT”).
`
` UT retained me as a technical expert in both proceedings to provide
`
`various opinions regarding the ’901 patent. I have not previously served as an
`
`expert witness for UT other than in the preparation of the declaration I previously
`
`submitted in this proceeding. I do not have any current or past affiliation with
`
`Liquidia.
`
`
`
`I have been specifically asked to review the Institution Decision
`
`rendered by the Board in this proceeding, and, in light of the determinations made
`
`by the Board, provide additional expert opinions on the validity of claims 1-9 of
`
`the ’901 patent. In connection with my analysis, in addition to reviewing the
`
`Institution Decision and materials I considered in connection with my first
`
`declaration (EX2002), I have reviewed the deposition testimony of Dr. Winkler. I
`
`-4-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`have also reviewed and considered various other documents in arriving at my
`
`opinions and may cite to them in this declaration. For convenience, I list additional
`
`documents considered in arriving at my opinions in Section X.
`
` UT is compensating me $480 per hour for my services. No part of my
`
`compensation depends opinions or on the outcome of this proceeding.
`
`III. SUMMARY OF OPINIONS
`
` As noted in my first declaration, Dr. Winkler asserts “three strong
`
`reasons” that purportedly support a finding of unpatentability. See Declaration of
`
`Dr. Jeffery D. Winkler (“Winkler,” EX1002), ¶36. Each of these reasons lacks
`
`merit. In my opinion, neither Dr. Winkler’s testimony nor his references
`
`demonstrates a reasonable likelihood that any of the challenged claims is rendered
`
`obvious by Phares alone, or is rendered obvious by Moriarty in view of Phares.
`
`
`
`In my opinion, the Board’s provisional determination that “the
`
`combination of Moriarty and Phares teaches the same process steps as challenged
`
`claim 1 [such that] the product from these steps would include the same resulting
`
`impurities” was based on flawed and unsupported testimony. See Institution
`
`Decision, 27. Rather, as even Dr. Winkler acknowledges, the same general
`
`synthetic steps – in terms of main starting materials and products – does not
`
`guarantee sameness in the final product or impurity profile. Indeed, Dr. Winkler
`
`testified that:
`
`
`
`
`
`-5-
`
`

`

`
`
`
`[V]ariations could be [due to] different experimentalists. They could
`involve things like the rate of addition being not exactly the same in
`the two cases. The method of st[ir]ring being not exactly the same in
`the two cases. The solvents, even though they’re said to be exactly the
`same, maybe they’re not exactly the same. And maybe one introduces
`an impurity that the other one doesn’t, or a contaminant. So it’s the
`kind of thing where I think we really have to do the experiment to be
`certain[.]
`Winkler Deposition Transcript, December 14, 2020 (“Winkler Depo.,” EX2026),
`
`122:19-123:9. I agree that even the seemingly smallest change – in the process
`
`chemist or engineer, or even in the stirring, as Dr. Winkler suggests, can have an
`
`effect on the outcome of a reaction.
`
`
`
`I note, however, when asked if “manufacturing pharmaceutical
`
`products” was “a problem facing those skilled in the art,” Dr. Winkler responded
`
`“It could be, but I don’t really know. I don’t know what that is or would be.”
`
`EX2026 (Winkler Depo.), 72:23-73:9. When asked if any of the exhibits he cited
`
`“discuss the preparation of pharmaceutical batches,” Dr. Winkler testified: “I’m
`
`afraid that I don’t understand your question.” Id., 94:23-95:2. When asked if “one
`
`engaged in pharmaceutical manufacturing use batch the same way” he did, he
`
`responded he “d[id]n’t know exactly how that person would be using the term
`
`batch.” Id., 97:6-19. These lines of testimony underscore the misguided focus of
`
`Dr. Winkler’s analyses in this case, and lack of understanding of the field pertinent
`
`-6-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`to the claims of the ’901 patent. I note for example that in the pharmaceutical field,
`
`terms such as “batch” have a clear regulatory definition.
`
` As I discuss in more detail below, I continue to hold the opinion that
`
`the challenged claims of the ’901 patent recite inventive subject matter that is
`
`patentably distinct from the disclosures asserted by Dr. Winkler.
`
` Because my first declaration addressed both the ’066 and the ’901
`
`patents, many of my opinions were expressed first with regard to the ’066 patent,
`
`and then echoed more succinctly for the ’901 patent, by making reference to my
`
`analysis of the ’066 patent claims. Yet the ’901 patent is now the only patent
`
`undergoing inter partes review. Thus, I have chosen to reiterate much of my
`
`testimony from my first declaration, more specifically framing my opinions to the
`
`’901 patent claims. In addition, I have added additional analysis in view of the
`
`Institution Decision as well as the additional testimony of Dr. Winkler from his
`
`December 14, 2020 deposition.
`
`IV. LEGAL PRINCIPLES
`
` The legal principles applied in my first declaration are again applied
`
`here.
`
`
`
`In addition, I understand that the patent law concept of inherency may
`
`supply a missing claim limitation in an obviousness analysis; however, the use of
`
`inherency must be carefully circumscribed in the context of obviousness. For
`
`-7-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`example, I understand that the inherency of an advantage and its obviousness are
`
`entirely different questions because obviousness cannot be predicated on what was
`
`unknown.
`
`
`
`I further understand that inherency cannot be established by
`
`probabilities or possibilities; the putative inherent feature must necessarily be
`
`present. The mere fact that a certain thing might result from a given set of
`
`circumstances is not sufficient. The concept of inherency must be limited when
`
`applied to obviousness and is present only when the limitation at issue is the
`
`“natural result” of the combination of prior art elements.
`
`
`
`I also understand that product-by-process claims are defined at least in
`
`part in terms of the method or process by which it is made. I understand that, in
`
`determining patentability of a product-by-process claim, the focus is on the product
`
`and not the process of making it. I further understand that when the process by
`
`which a product is made imparts structural and functional differences
`
`distinguishing the claimed product from the prior art, then those differences are
`
`relevant as evidence of patentability even though they are not explicitly part of the
`
`claim.
`
`V. OVERVIEW OF THE ’901 PATENT
`
`-8-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` The ’901 patent is entitled “Process to Prepare Treprostinil, the Active
`
`Ingredient in Remodulin®.” EX1001, Title. I understand the ’901 patent has a
`
`priority date of December 17, 2007. Id., [60].
`
` Claims of the ’901 Patent
`
` The ’901 patent has 9 claims. Claim 1, the only independent claim,
`
`recites:
`
`1. A pharmaceutical batch consisting of treprostinil or a salt thereof
`and impurities resulting from
`(a) alkylating a benzindene triol,
`(b) hydrolyzing the product of step (a) to form a solution
`comprising treprostinil,
`(c) contacting the solution comprising treprostinil from step (b)
`with a base to form a salt of treprostinil, (d) isolating the
`salt of treprostinil, and (e) optionally reacting the salt of
`treprostinil with an acid to form treprostinil, and
`wherein the pharmaceutical batch contains at least 2.9 g of
`treprostinil or its salt.
`EX1001 (the ’901 patent), 17:24-18:2; see also EX2007 (Complete ’901
`
`Prosecution History (“’901 PH”)), 3-6 (correcting claim 1, which issued reciting
`
`“(c) containing the,” to “(c) contacting the”).
`
` Claims 2-5 recite limitations associated with the pharmaceutical batch
`
`of claim 1. EX1001 (the ’901 patent), 18:3-11.
`
`-9-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` Claims 6-9 are method claims. Claim 6 recites a method of preparing
`
`a pharmaceutical product from the pharmaceutical batch of claim 1, comprising
`
`storing a pharmaceutical batch of a treprostinil salt at ambient temperature and
`
`preparing a pharmaceutical product from the pharmaceutical batch after storage.
`
`EX1001 (the ’901 patent), 18:12-17. Claim 8 recites a method of preparing a
`
`pharmaceutical batch as recited in claim 1, including forming and isolating a
`
`treprostinil salt. Id., 18:20-27. Claims 7 and 9 depend from claims 6 and 8,
`
`respectively, and recite that the treprostinil salt is treprostinil diethanolamine. Id.,
`
`18:18-19, 28-29.
`
`
`
`Prosecution Histories
`1.
`
`The Examiner Already Considered All of Liquidia’s Prior
`Art During Prosecution
`
`
`
`I understand Liquidia acknowledges that Examiner Valenrod, who
`
`examined the applications that issued as the ’901 patent, “considered both Moriarty
`
`(Ex. 1009) and Phares (Ex. 1008) and relied upon these two prior art references in
`
`issuing a rejection of all claims” of each of the ’901 patent. Pet., 4. This is true.
`
` Liquidia also asserts that “the Examiner did not have an accurate and
`
`complete picture of the prior art” when allowing the challenged claims. Pet., 4.
`
`This is not true.
`
`
`
`
`
`-10-
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` Examiner Valenrod considered every single prior art reference cited in
`
`each petition, and every single prior art reference that Dr. Winkler cites in each of
`
`his declarations, during prosecution. More specifically, each of the following
`
`documents was expressly marked as considered by Examiner Valenrod. In fact, the
`
`’901 patent prosecution history also includes copies of many of these documents,
`
`as noted below.
`
` EX1007 - U.S. Patent No. 6,765,117 to Moriarty et al.
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
` 7270, listing the ’177 patent as considered
`
` EX1008 - PCT Patent Application No. WO 2005/007081 to Phares
`
`et al.
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
` 6928, using Phares in a rejection
`
` 6933-7054, full text of Phares
`
` 7271, listing Phares as considered
`
` EX1009 - Moriarty, et al., The Intramolecular Asymmetric Pauson-
`
`Khand Cyclization as a Novel and General Stereoselective Route
`
`to Benzindene Prostacyclins: Synthesis of UT-15 (Treprostinil),
`
`J. ORG. CHEM., 69(6) 1890-1902 (2004);
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
`-11-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` 6925-28, 7255, using Moriarty in a rejection
`
` 7272, listing Moriarty as considered
`
` EX1010 - Wiberg, K., Laboratory Technique in Organic Chemistry,
`
`(1960) p. 112;
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
` 7056, listing Wiberg as considered
`
` 3313-18, 7204-09, same excerpt of Wiberg as
`
`submitted in EX1010
`
` EX1011 - Schoffstall, A. M., et al., Microscale and Miniscale
`
`Organic Chemistry Laboratory Experiments, 2nd ed. (2004) pp.
`
`200-02
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
` 7056, listing Schoffstall as considered
`
` 3302-06, 7210-14, same excerpt of Schoffstall as
`
`submitted in EX1011
`
` EX1012 - English translation of Japanese Patent Application No. 56-
`
`122328A to Kawakami, et al.
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
` 7271, listing Kawakami as considered
`
` EX1013 - Eğe, S., Organic Chemistry, 2nd ed. (1989) pp. 541-47
`
`-12-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
`
` 7056, listing Eğe as considered
`
` 7195-7203, same excerpt of Eğe as submitted in
`
`EX1013
`
` EX1014 - U.S. Patent No. 4,306,075 to Aristoff
`o See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH):
` 7270, listing the ’705 patent as considered
`
` 4673-4726, full text of the ’705 patent
`
`See also EX1001, [56], 1-3.
`
` Dr. Winkler cites to the file history just once in his analysis of the
`
`challenged claims. See EX1002, ¶26n.1. I note that Dr. Winkler does not
`
`acknowledge, however, that the Examiner previously considered each of prior art
`
`references that he cites. See also EX2026 (Winkler Depo.), 74:24-75:9 (noting, “I
`
`don’t remember” and “I can’t remember” when asked, e.g., if he “consider[ed] the
`
`prosecution history for the ’901 patent in forming your opinion on claim
`
`construction”).
`
` Examiner Valenrod allowed the challenged claims in the ’901 patent
`
`after specifically considering Moriarty (EX1009) and Phares (EX1008). See, e.g.,
`
`EX2007 (’901 PH), 7255 (anticipation by Moriarty), 6925-28 (anticipation by
`
`Moriarty; obviousness over Moriarty and Phares).
`
`-13-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` Dr. Winkler echoes arguments already raised and resolved during
`
`prosecution. EX2007, 7255 (Examiner Valenrod asserting: “Moriarty discloses
`
`compound 7 which has the same structure as the instantly claimed product”), 6925-
`
`26 (“Although the method of Moriarty and the steps recited in the instant claims
`
`are not identical, the product obtained is the same”); EX1002, ¶¶62-72. But this
`
`assertion, as Examiner Valenrod later acknowledged, was, and still is, incorrect.
`
` UT subsequently amended the pending claims and requested
`
`reconsideration of the non-final rejection based on Moriarty and Phares. EX2007
`
`(’901 PH), 3819-25 . While noting the commercial process context of the pending
`
`claims and the pharmaceutical products to which they were drawn, UT also
`
`underscored its desire “to bring to the Examiner’s attention documents from
`
`IPR2016-0006,” which involved the “parent” of the ’901 patent—U.S. Patent No.
`
`8,497,393. EX2007 (’901 PH), 3822 (similar).
`
` Though Examiner Valenrod subsequently issued a Final Rejection for
`
`double patenting, he withdrew the prior art-based rejection over Moriarty and
`
`Phares. EX2007 (’901 PH), 3808-13. The Examiner withdrew the rejection
`
`because the combination of Moriarty and Phares does not teach the claimed
`
`pharmaceutical batches or pharmaceutical products recited in the ’901 patent
`
`claims. The difference between Moriarty’s treprostinil product and that claimed by
`
`UT is presented as secondary to this fact. See, e.g., EX2007 (’901 PH), 3810
`
`-14-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`(withdrawing Moriarty and Phares-based rejections for multiple reasons, including,
`
`e.g., claim amendments). As noted in my first declaration, Liquidia ignores these
`
`missing teachings in the prior art in both its summary of the file history, as well as
`
`in the substantively identical challenge it brings in its IPRs.
`
` After UT submitted a terminal disclaimer, having considered all of the
`
`submitted materials, including those from the ’393 IPR in addition to each and
`
`every prior art document now submitted by Liquidia in the present cases, as well as
`
`materials from four pending district court cases, Examiner Valenrod issued a
`
`Notice of Allowance. EX2007 (’901 PH), 11-15, 3473-76.
`
`2.
`
`Examiner Valenrod Considered the Full Record of the ’393
`IPR During Prosecution
`
`
`
`I understand Liquidia asserts the importance and relevance of the ’393
`
`IPR (specifically the final written decision of the ’393 IPR) in challenging the ’901
`
`patent. But the final written decision of the ’393 IPR is a legal determination on
`
`different claims. It does not alter the fact that the Examiner expressly considered
`
`the same prior art when assessing the patentability of the distinct claims of either
`
`patent here. And while the ’393 final written decision was not cited during
`
`prosecution (it came out three days after the ’901 patent issued), every other
`
`material document from that case and related litigation was considered during
`
`prosecution and is subsequently cited on the face of the ’901 patent. See EX1001,
`
`-15-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`2-3; see also EX2026 (Winkler Depo.), 82:17-83:3 (Dr. Winkler testifying “I don’t
`
`remember” when asked if was “aware that the Examiner knew about the ’393
`
`patent record and allowed the ’901 claims anyway”).
`
`
`
`I understand the file history exhibits submitted by Liquidia and cited
`
`by Dr. Winkler were heavily excerpted, running just 178 and 252 pages, while the
`
`complete file histories are thousands of pages long. See EX1006, see also Pet., 4;
`
`EX1002, ¶26n.1; EX2007 (’901 PH). I understand the pages not submitted by
`
`Liquidia include notices of related proceedings and associated papers and exhibits
`
`(including the entire record of the ’393 IPR up to the final written decision).
`
`
`
`I understand Liquidia asserts that Examiner Valenrod “erred in
`
`discounting the arguments set forth by the petitioner and its expert in the ’393
`
`IPR.” Pet., 5. Nothing suggests these arguments were discounted. Rather, quite the
`
`opposite is true. The entire record of the petitioner’s arguments (including even its
`
`demonstratives for the final oral hearing) in the ’393 IPR were considered by
`
`Examiner Valenrod during prosecution. EX2007 (’901 PH), 20-23 (’393
`
`Petitioner’s Demonstratives, Patent Owner Response, Patent Owner
`
`Demonstratives, Institution Decision), 3468 (’393 Petitioner’s Reply), 7056 (’393
`
`Petition). Materials and arguments from four pending district court cases were also
`
`considered by the Examiner, but Liquidia also omitted these pages from the file
`
`-16-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`history exhibit in this proceeding. See EX2007 (’901 PH), 21-23; see also, e.g., id.,
`
`37-265, 269-303, 2373-3141.
`
`
`
`In my opinion, there is no indication that after reviewing the entire
`
`record up to the FWD of the ’393 IPR, Examiner Valenrod misunderstood the prior
`
`art, the arguments made in the ’393 IPR, or the materiality of arguments made in
`
`the ’393 IPR to the patentability of the claims of the ’901 patent.
`
`3.
`
`The ’393 IPR Final Written Decision is Not Material to the
`Patentability of the Challenged Patent Claims
`
`
`
`I have also reviewed the ’393 final written decision and find that
`
`Liquidia does not accurately represent the Board’s rationale provided in the ’393
`
`IPR. I also find nothing contradictory between the ’393 IPR final written decision
`
`and Examiner Valenrod’s analysis during prosecution of the ’901 patent.
`
`
`
`In his declaration, Dr. Winkler invokes arguments he previously made
`
`in the context of the ’393 IPR. See, e.g., EX1002, ¶¶36-37. For example, Dr.
`
`Winkler asserts: “since the claim limitations of the ’901 patent are substantively
`
`similar to the invalidated ’393 patent, the ’901 patent should be similarly declared
`
`invalid.” EX1002, ¶36; see also id., ¶37 (asserting “Claims 1-9 of the ’901 patent
`
`should be held invalid for similar reasons as the ’393 patent because the claims of
`
`the ’901 patent are substantively similar to those of the ’901 patent in that they
`
`disclose the same treprostinil and the identical treprostinil salt”). I understand,
`
`-17-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`however, that Dr. Winkler did not consider that the scope of claim 1 of the ’393
`
`patent is drastically larger than that of the ’901 patent, or whether all of the claims
`
`were product-by-process claims. EX2026 (Winkler Depo.), 65:19-67:23.
`
` Rather, all of Dr. Winkler’s analysis is done through the lens of a
`
`“chemist, looking at the structural formula that’s given in claim 1” of the ’393
`
`patent, and all Dr. Winkler considered is that a chemist “would understand that
`
`[’393 claim 1] could include treprostinil, and that it could also include the
`
`treprostinil diethanolamine salt.” Id., 86:22-87:8; see also id., 88:21-89:3 (“I think
`
`the important thing to me in my analysis was that both the ’393 and the ’901
`
`disclose treprostinil and the treprostinil diethanolamine salt”), 90:1-14 (“[T]hey
`
`disclose the same compound. As a chemist, that’s certainly where my focus is, the
`
`structures and the identities of the chemical entities”), 91:24-92:14 (“I recognize
`
`that the wording in the [] claims [of the ’393 and ’901 patents] are not identical,
`
`but [] the compound that they’re looking at, the compound that they’re describing
`
`is identical,” and “I see no differences in the descriptions of treprostinil and
`
`treprostinil diethanolamine salt, as I understand the claims of the two patents”).
`
`Yet whether or not the ’901 patent recites claims that reference treprostinil or
`
`treprostinil diethanolamine is not the end of the analysis. As I set forth in detail in
`
`my first declaration, and in more detail below, the scope of Dr. Winkler’s analysis
`
`is, at the very most, only the beginning.
`
`-18-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
` Dr. Winkler’s assertions are incorrect. The claims of the ’901 patent
`
`recite limitations relating to a pharmaceutical batch consisting of a treprostinil API
`
`(active pharmaceutical ingredient) and impurities. See EX1001 (the ’901 patent),
`
`17:24-18:2; see also, e.g., id., 18:5-9 (claims 3-4, reciting therapeutically effective
`
`amounts of treprostinil or its salt), 18:12-19 (claims 6-7, reciting methods of
`
`preparing a pharmaceutical product that involve storing a pharmaceutical batch of
`
`a treprostinil salt). These limitations do not appear in the ’393 patent claims either.
`
`See EX1004 (’393 patent), 17:52-21:16.
`
`
`
`I provide a table comparing the limitations of the independent claims
`
`of the ’393 and ’901 patents below, as well as their dependent claims, aligning
`
`similar or related limitations horizontally where possible, while highlighting
`
`differences in red.
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 1
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 9
`
`1. A product comprising
`
`9. A product comprising
`
`’901 PATENT CLAIM 1
`1. A pharmaceutical batch
`consisting of
`
`a compound of formula I
`
`a compound having formula
`IV
`
`
`or a pharmaceutically
`acceptable salt thereof,
`
`wherein said product is
`prepared by a process
`comprising
`
`
`or a pharmaceutically
`acceptable salt thereof,
`wherein the product is
`prepared by the process
`comprising
`
`treprostinil or a salt thereof
`
`
`
`
`-19-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 1
`(a) alkylating a compound of
`[a genus including
`benzindene triol] with an
`alkylating agent to produce a
`compound [from a genus
`comprising treprostinil],
` (b) hydrolyzing the product
`[] step (a) with a base,
`
`7. The product of claim 1,
`[that is treprostinil].
`
` (c) contacting the product
`of step (h) with a base B to
`form a salt of formula Is.
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 9
`
`’901 PATENT CLAIM 1
`
`(a) alkylating a compound of
`[a genus including
`benzindene triol] with an
`alkylating agent to produce a
`compound of [a genus
`including the cyano-
`treprostinil precursor]
`(b) hydrolyzing the product
`[]of step (a) with a base,
`
`(c) contacting the product
`of step (h) with a base B to
`form a salt of formula IVs,
`and
`
`and impurities resulting
`from (a) alkylating a
`benzindene triol, (b)
`hydrolyzing the product of
`step (a) to form a solution
`comprising treprostinil,
`
`(c) contacting the solution
`comprising treprostinil from
`step (b) with a base to form a
`salt of treprostinil,
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`(d) isolating the salt of
`treprostinil,
`
`(d) optionally reacting the
`salt formed in step (c) with
`an acid to form the
`compound of formula I.
`21. The product of claim 1,
`wherein step (d) is
`performed.
`
`(d) optionally reacting the
`salt formed in step (c) with
`an acid to form the
`compound of formula IV.
`
`and (e) optionally reacting
`the salt of treprostinil with
`an acid to form treprostinil,
`
`and wherein the
`pharmaceutical batch
`contains at least 2.9 g of
`treprostinil or its salt.
`
`
`
`
`
`22. The product of claim
`21, wherein the product
`comprises a
`pharmaceutically
`acceptable salt formed
`from the product of step
`(d).
`
`
`
`
`
`-20-
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 1
`
`’393 PATENT CLAIM 9
`
`
`
`’901 PATENT CLAIM 1
`See claim 1.
`
`8. A method of preparing a
`pharmaceutical batch as
`claimed in claim 1,
`comprising (a) alkylating a
`benzindene triol, (b)
`hydrolyzing the product of
`step (a) to form a solution
`comprising treprostinil, (c)
`contacting the solution
`comprising treprostinil from
`step (b) with a base to form a
`salt of treprostinil, (d)
`isolating the salt of
`treprostinil, and (e)
`optionally reacting the salt
`of treprostinil with an acid to
`form treprostinil.
`
`See claim 1.
`
`See claim 9.
`
`See claim 1.
`
`2. The product of claim 1,
`wherein the purity of
`compound of formula I in
`said product is at least
`99.5%.
`3. The product of claim 1,
`wherein the alkylating agent
`is Cl(CH2) wCN,
`Br(CH2)wCN, or I(CH2)
`wCN.
`4. The product of claim 1,
`wherein the base in step (b)
`is KOH or NaOH.
`
`See also claim 19.
`5. The product of claim 1,
`wherein the base B in step
`(c) is selected from the
`group [that includes
`diethanolamine].
`
`10. The product of claim 9,
`wherein the purity of
`product of step (d) is at
`least 99.5%.
`
`11. The product of claim 9,
`wherein the alkylating agent
`is ClCH2CN.
`
`12. The product of claim 9,
`wherein the base in step (b)
`is KOH

This document is available on Docket Alarm but you must sign up to view it.


Or .

Accessing this document will incur an additional charge of $.

After purchase, you can access this document again without charge.

Accept $ Charge
throbber

Still Working On It

This document is taking longer than usual to download. This can happen if we need to contact the court directly to obtain the document and their servers are running slowly.

Give it another minute or two to complete, and then try the refresh button.

throbber

A few More Minutes ... Still Working

It can take up to 5 minutes for us to download a document if the court servers are running slowly.

Thank you for your continued patience.

This document could not be displayed.

We could not find this document within its docket. Please go back to the docket page and check the link. If that does not work, go back to the docket and refresh it to pull the newest information.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

You need a Paid Account to view this document. Click here to change your account type.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

Set your membership status to view this document.

With a Docket Alarm membership, you'll get a whole lot more, including:

  • Up-to-date information for this case.
  • Email alerts whenever there is an update.
  • Full text search for other cases.
  • Get email alerts whenever a new case matches your search.

Become a Member

One Moment Please

The filing “” is large (MB) and is being downloaded.

Please refresh this page in a few minutes to see if the filing has been downloaded. The filing will also be emailed to you when the download completes.

Your document is on its way!

If you do not receive the document in five minutes, contact support at support@docketalarm.com.

Sealed Document

We are unable to display this document, it may be under a court ordered seal.

If you have proper credentials to access the file, you may proceed directly to the court's system using your government issued username and password.


Access Government Site

We are redirecting you
to a mobile optimized page.





Document Unreadable or Corrupt

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket

We are unable to display this document.

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket