Trilateral Project 24.1-Biotechnology 023

A hybridization claim can be defined by a description containing all the elements listed below as 1) - 3).

• 1) One or more nucleotide sequences defined in, for example, working example
  
• 2) the phrase of "under stringent conditions" in the claim
  (The concrete definition of "stringent" conditions be provided in the detailed description of the invention.)
  
• 3) Property or function of encoded protein
  (Such a claim limitation needs to be the one which distinguishes the encoded protein from other proteins. The property or function may be specifically defined not in the claim but in the detailed description of the invention.)

However, in case that artificial DNAs are included in a claimed invention, because huge number of DNAs which are made artificially can hybridize to the invented DNA, DNAs which encode proteins having the same function as the invented protein cannot be selected form those DNAs without undue experimentation by a person skilled in the art in some cases. In those cases, the enablement requirement cannot be satisfied. (see 1.2.1.2 (3).)