John  Desper wilmington

John Desper

Patent Agent

Overview

John Desper is a registered Patent Agent with extensive background in chemistry, including but not limited to: organic, pharmaceutical, instrumental, and materials chemistry. Over the last several years, John has engaged in many areas of patent practice, including the preparation and prosecution of patent applications, execution and interpretation of patent- and non-patent literature searches, and crafting of reports directed at issues of freedom-to-operate, invalidity, and patentability. John has provided scientific expertise for attorneys on matters of diligence, regulation, and licensing.

Prior to joining Eckert Seamans, John served as patent agent with a boutique Midwestern law firm. John’s docket included a wide array of small-molecule pharmaceutical candidates, a number of which are advancing in the clinical and regulatory pipeline. John has also contributed to various aspects for a number of ongoing biopharmaceutical projects. John collaborated with professionals handling a range of roles in research and development, including bench chemists, clinicians, innovators, foreign associates, and licensing partners and their representatives.

John’s educational background provided him a strong foundation for both practical bench-level organic chemistry and the more quantitative aspects of modern analytical and instrumental chemistry. John’s experience with supervising, managing, and supporting graduate-level research, along with teaching undergraduate and graduate students, has nurtured a respect for the importance of both teamwork and interpersonal communications in all aspects of technological endeavors.

Representative Matters

  • Participated in all phases of preparing and prosecuting domestic and international patent applications in diverse fields, including pharmaceutical agents, particularly but not limited to agents directed at proliferative diseases, methods of diagnosis and treatment, novel chemical compositions and states of matter, including salts and polymorphs, and methods of synthesis.
  • Provided scientific and patent-related guidance to emerging innovators in both industrial and academic settings, directed both at providing meaningful analysis of existing patent landscapes and preparing and prosecuting valuable and robust early-stage filings.
  • Contributed to safeguarding the intellectual property at several junctures in the development pathway for pharmaceutical candidates, including lifecycle management measures for maximal client value.
  • Advocated for client technological advances both in the prosecution of patent applications and during post-grant proceedings after patent issue.

Professional Affiliations

  • American Chemical Society
  • American Crystallographic Association

News and Insights

Publications

  • Aakeroy, Christer B., Wijethunga, Tharanga K., Desper, John, Đaković, Marijana “Electrostatic potential differences and halogen-bond selectivity” Crystal Growth & Design 2016, 16(5), 2662-2670.
  • Aakeröy, Christer B., Forbes, Safiyyah, Desper, John. “Using cocrystals to systematically modulate aqueous solubility and melting behavior of an anticancer drug”, Am. Chem. Soc. 2009, 131(47), 17048-17049.
  • Hua, Duy H., McGill, James W., Lou, Kaiyan, Ueki, Akiharu, Helfrich, Brian, Desper, John, Zanello, Piero, Cinquantini, Arnaldo, Corsini, Maddalena, Fontani, Marco “Parallel and perpendicular stacking of ferrocene rings.: Syntheses, X-ray structures, and electrochemistry of 1, 8-bis-[1-(1′-phenylthio) ferrocenyl] naphthalene and 8, 8′-bis-[1-(1′-phenylthio) ferrocenyl]-1, 1′-binaphthyl.” chim. acta 2003, 350, 259-265.
  • Sun, Shusen, Desper, John “Regioselective syntheses of 5-and 6-aminoanthracene-2,3-dimethanol” Tetrahedron 1998, 54(3-4): 411-422.
  • Desper, John M., Breslow, Ronald, “Catalysis of an intramolecular aldol condensation by imidazole-bearing cyclodextrins” Am. Chem. Soc. 1994, 116(26): 12081-12082.
  • Liang, Gui-Bai, Desper, John M., Gellman, Samuel H. “Effects of backbone rigidification on intramolecular hydrogen bonding in a family of diamides.” Am. Chem. Soc. 1993, 115(3), 925-938.
  • Ford, Lincoln E., Nakagawa, K., Desper, J., Seow, C.Y. “Effect of osmotic compression on the force-velocity properties of glycerinated rabbit skeletal muscle cells.” Gen. Physiol. 1991, 97(1): 73-88.