How should reserved characters be handled in a Sequence Listing XML?

This page is an FAQ based on guidance from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only: it is not legal advice.

According to MPEP 2413.01(a), reserved characters in a Sequence Listing XML must be replaced with predefined entities. The MPEP states:

“The reserved characters “, &, ‘, (Unicode code points 0022, 0026, 0027, 003C and 003E respectively), must be replaced as set forth in the table below.”

The replacement table is as follows:

• < is replaced with <
• > is replaced with >
• & is replaced with &
• ” is replaced with “
• ‘ is replaced with '

It’s important to note that “The only character entity references permitted are the predefined entities set forth above.”