Patents Examined by Kery A. Fries
  • Patent number: 5914306
    Abstract: This invention relates to novel stabilized enzymes. More specifically the invention relates to novel stabilized enzymes, in which a naturally occurring amino acid residue (other than proline) has been substituted with a proline residue at one or more positions; at which position(s) the dihedral angles .phi. (phi) constitute values within the interval ?-90.degree.<.phi.<-40.degree.!; preferably the dihedral angles .phi. (phi) and .psi. (psi) constitute values within the intervals ?-90.degree.<.psi.<-40.degree.! and ?-180.degree.<.psi.<-150.degree. or -80<$g c)<10 or 100<.psi.<180!; and which positions(s) is/are not located in regions in which the enzyme is characterized by possessing .alpha.-helical or .beta.-sheet structure. The invention also relates to nucleotide sequences encoding the novel stabilized enzymes, and expression vectors and host organisms containing the nucleotide sequences. This invention also relates to detergent compositions comprising the stabilized enzymes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 22, 1999
    Assignee: Novo Nordisk A/S
    Inventors: Allan Svendsen, Claus von der Osten, Ib Groth Clausen, Shamkant Anant Patkar, Kim Borch
  • Patent number: 5914301
    Abstract: A multipurpose detergent composed of: soda ash 40%.about.30% by weight; sodium sulfate 18%.about.25% by weight; sodium lauryl sulfate 23%.about.10% by weight; coconut oil fatty diethanolamide 11%.about.3% by weight; sodium carbonate peroxide 23%.about.10% by weight; citric acid 12%.about.3% by weight; sodium metasilicate 10%.about.2.5% by weight; carboxy methyl cellulose 7%.about.2% by weight; sodium lauroyl lactylate 15%.about.7% by weight; sodium polycrylate 5%.about.1% by weight; and natural enzyme 8%.about.2% by weight.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 1997
    Date of Patent: June 22, 1999
    Inventors: Yu-Chao Hsu, Wan-Yee Pan
  • Patent number: 5912405
    Abstract: The invention is directed to a method of bleaching dye or colorant in solution which comprises a phenol oxidizing enzyme (e.g. A peroxidase or a laccase) and an enhancing agent (e.g. acetosyringone).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 1997
    Date of Patent: June 15, 1999
    Assignee: Novo Nordisk A/S
    Inventors: Palle Schneider, Ture Damhus
  • Patent number: 5912408
    Abstract: Enzymes are used in a dry cleaning composition and process. Cleaning compositions comprising lipase, protease and/or amylase enzymes are applied to soiled fabrics in the presence of an organic solvent such as butoxy propoxy propanol to clean the fabrics. In a preferred mode, an enzyme-containing dry cleaning composition is releasably contained in a sheet substrate. The sheet is tumbled with soiled fabrics in a conventional home clothes dryer to clean soiled garments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 1997
    Date of Patent: June 15, 1999
    Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Toan Trinh, Michael Peter Siklosi
  • Patent number: 5906215
    Abstract: A cleaning solution for removing salt, rust, old oil and grease from fishing reels employs in combination 2-butoyxethanol, the tetra sodium salt of ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid, sodium metasilicate, sodium laureth sulfate and water. Fishing reel parts are immersed in the solution in an inner container having holes in a bottom surface and enclosed by an outer container. The inner container is removed, the solution flows out and remaining solution is washed from the reel parts with water to leave clean reel parts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 25, 1999
    Assignee: Reel Clean Corporation
    Inventor: Alan P. Conroy
  • Patent number: 5904161
    Abstract: Cleaning compositions, particularly automatic dishwashing detergent compositions, comprising a stability-enhanced amylase and bleach-improving materials are provided. More specifically, the invention relates to granular automatic dishwashing detergents which provide enhanced cleaning/bleaching benefits. The automatic dishwashing compositions comprise stability-enhanced amylase enzymes and one or more bleach-improving compounds, such as organic peroxides, quaternary substituted bleach activators, quaternary substituted peracids and manganese or iron bleach catalysts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 18, 1999
    Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Saroj Rai, William Michael Scheper, Lucille Florence Taylor, Gregory Stephen Caravajal, James Charles Theophile Roger Burckett-St. Laurent, Kakumanu Pramod
  • Patent number: 5904736
    Abstract: In washing agents containing tensides and cellulase, the properties of the cellulase which are relevant to the application were to be improved. This was essentially achieved in that use was made of a cellulase mixture in which the first component, with a CMCase activity of 1 U per liter and a protein concentration of a most 3 mg per liter, gives an increase in remission of at least 5 units in the secondary washing test and the second component, with a CMCase activity of 20 U per liter gives an increase in absorption in the cellulose decomposition test of at least 0.075.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 18, 1999
    Assignee: Henkel Kommanditgesellschaft auf Aktien
    Inventors: Karl-Heinz Maurer, Albrecht Weiss
  • Patent number: 5900395
    Abstract: A solid detergent composition useful for machine dishwashing is described. The product contains a first layer having an oxygen bleach system, a buffering system, a builder, and an enzyme. The first layer dissolves to deliver a pH of about 8.5 to about 11 in the wash water. A second layer includes an effective amount of an acidity agent and a continuous medium having a melting point in the range of from about 35.degree. C. to about 50.degree. C. The material may be a paraffin wax, a natural wax, a polyvinyl ether, fatty acids and mixtures thereof. The second layer dissolves in wash water to deliver a pH of from about 6.5 to about 9. The release order of the functional ingredients allows for a high level of peracid species generation in the initial wash stages followed by optimum bleaching throughout the wash.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 4, 1999
    Assignee: Lever Brothers Company
    Inventors: John Richard Nicholson, Bozena Marianna Piatek, David John Lang, Isaac Israel Secemski
  • Patent number: 5885950
    Abstract: A composition and methods for cleaning grease-traps, septic tank control, discharge water from industrial meat and poultry processing and packing plants, lift stations and municipal systems. The composition comprises preservatives at a concentration of about 0.35%, by weight, a non-ionic surfactant at a concentration of about 8%, by weight, triethanolamine at a concentration of about 2%, by weight and a fermentation supernatant at a concentration of about 12.14%, by weight. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the composition comprises a fermentation supernatant from a Saccharomyces cerevisiae culture, sodium benzoate, imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea, triethanolamine and a polyoxyethlene alcohol surfactant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1999
    Assignee: Neozyme International, Inc.
    Inventors: Parker Dale, John E. Hill
  • Patent number: 5885304
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a detergent composition, detergent additive as well as a method of oxidizing a substrate which comprises contacting the substrate with a composition which includes an enzyme selected from the group consisting of laccase, catechl oxidase, monophenol monooxygenase, and bilirubin oxidase and an enhancing agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1999
    Assignee: Novo Nordisk A/S
    Inventors: Palle Schneider, Anders Hjelholt Pedersen
  • Patent number: 5883066
    Abstract: The present invention is a liquid detergent composition containing anionic surfactant and cellulase. Said composition further comprises hydrophobic amines as cellulase stabilizers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1999
    Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Ivan Maurice Alfons Jan Herbots, Madeleine Petronella Jansen
  • Patent number: 5883064
    Abstract: A granular detergent composition having a density from 550 to 950 g/liter, said detergent composition comprisingi) a polymeric dye transfer inhibiting agentii) a protease having an isoelectric point below 10iii) a surfactant system which is free of alkylbenzene sulfonate surfactant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 1996
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1999
    Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Andre Cesar Baeck, Alfred Busch, Ann Katrien Marie Verschuere
  • Patent number: 5880080
    Abstract: The use of alkaline bacillus proteases in commercial laundry methods and compositions containing these proteases for commercial laundering are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1999
    Assignee: Solvay Enzymes GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Antoine Amory, Andre Clippe, Gerhard Konieczny-Janda
  • Patent number: 5877141
    Abstract: Glycolic acid or its salts is effective in stabilizing enzymes in liquid laundry detergent compositions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1999
    Assignee: Rhodia Inc.
    Inventors: Gladys Saliba Gabriel, Ronald B. Bell
  • Patent number: 5877139
    Abstract: There is provided an enzymatic detergent composition comprising one or more surfactants and an endoglucanase which is not a Family 7 cellulase, which contains no cellulose binding domain and wherein the catalytic domain contains at least two disulphide bridges. Preferably, the endoglucanase is producible from Thermomonospora fusca, or mutants or variants thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 1996
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1999
    Assignee: Lever Brothers Company, Division of Conopco, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric Casteleijn, Willem R. van Dijk, Jan Klugkist, Pieter Dirk van Wassenaar
  • Patent number: 5871550
    Abstract: A mutant cellulase obtainable from Thermomonospora spp is provided which differs from a precursor cellulase in that it has been genetically engineered to introduce a substitution, deletion or addition of an amino acid residue to said precursor cellulase which provided improved activity in a detergent. Preferably, the substitution is at a residue corresponding to T140 in Thermomonospora fusca.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 16, 1999
    Assignee: Genencor International, Inc.
    Inventors: Frits Goedegebuur, Scott D. Power, Deborah Winetzky, Anita Van Kimmenade, Mee-Young Yoon
  • Patent number: 5872091
    Abstract: This invention relates to a laundry detergent composition as well as a method of laundrying fabric or soiled garments in which the composition requires a surfactant, a pectinase enzyme, a specific hemicellulase enzyme or enzymes, a cellulase enzyme, and additional component which includes bleaching agents, builders, an amylase enzyme and/or a protease enzyme.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 16, 1999
    Assignee: Genencor International Inc.
    Inventors: Roelck A. Cuperus, Margareta A. Herweijer, Albert J.J. Van Ooijen, Dick J. Van Schouwen
  • Patent number: 5868868
    Abstract: The invention discloses PEG-modified proteases, compositions containing these modified enzymes, and methods for using them to clean contact lenses. The methods of the present invention are also directed to the simultaneous cleaning and disinfecting of contact lenses, when compositions of the present invention are combined with a suitable disinfectant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 9, 1999
    Assignee: Alcon Laboratories, Inc.
    Inventors: Joonsup Park, Ronald P. Quintana, Bor-shyue Hong, Bahram Asgharian
  • Patent number: 5866532
    Abstract: A cleaning and protectant composition for automotive painted surfaces is provided. The composition includes a low-foaming nonionic surfactant, a silicone antifoam emulsion, and a volatile silicone fluid. A method of cleaning and protecting an automotive surface includes applying the composition to the surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 2, 1999
    Assignee: Amway Corporation
    Inventors: Ronald C. Jackson, Robert D. Faber
  • Patent number: 5863881
    Abstract: A heavy oil remover comprises a cyclic hydrocarbon solvent, dipropylene glycol mono n-butyl ether, a volatility stabilizer, a salt of an alkyl aromatic sulfonic acid, a branched alcohol ethoxylate, an ethoxylated alkyl mercaptan, and water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 1998
    Date of Patent: January 26, 1999
    Assignee: Citra Science Ltd.
    Inventor: Jack T. Vlasblom