Requirements for Patent Applications Containing Nucleotide Sequence and/or Amino Acid Disclosures

The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) is amending the rules for submitting nucleotide or amino acid sequences in computer readable form (CRF) for patent applications. These amendments simplify the requirements of the rules, rearrange portions of the rules for better understanding and establish consistent rules to permit a single internationally acceptable computer readable form. Sequence Listings will be presented in an international, language neutral format using numeric identifiers rather than the current subject headings. The Paper Sequence Listing will preferably be a separately numbered section of the patent application. Sequences which contain fewer than four specifically identified nucleotides or amino acids will no longer be required to be submitted in computer readable form.