Antigen immunodominant epitope

Development of a peptide vaccine is derived from the identification of the immunodominant epitope of an antigen (141). A polypeptide based on the amino acid sequence of the epitope can then be synthesized. Preparation of a peptide vaccine has the advantage of allowing for large-scale production of a vaccine at relatively low cost. It also allows for selecting the appropriate T- or B-ceU epitopes to be included in the vaccine, which may be advantageous in some cases. Several vaccines based on peptide approaches, such as SPf66 (95) for malaria and an HIV-1 peptide (142) have been in clinical trials. No peptide vaccines are Hcensed as yet. 

Denkers, E.Y., Wassom, D.L., Krco, C.J. and Hayes, C.E. (1990b) The mouse antibody response to Trichinella spiralis defines a single, immunodominant epitope shared by multiple antigens. Journal of Immunology 144, 3152-3159. 

The use of peptide libraries to study T cell specificity was first demonstrated by Gundlach et al.45 Since then studies have focused on T cell specificity with emphasis on the identification of immunodominant epitopes in infectious diseases and autoimmune disorders, and on the determination of tumor antigens. The PS-SCL approach, as described above, was successfully used to study T cell recognition and to identify and optimize peptides having a range of activities in stimulating proliferative responses, cytokine production, and/or lysis by CD4+ and CD8+ murine and human T cell clones and T cell lines of known and unknown specificity.46-53... 

Epitope The structural part of an antigen that reacts with an antibody. These are groupings of amino acids in globular proteins and sugar side-chains in polysaccharides. The most critical part is called the immunodominant point. 

Giycopeptide vaccine recentiy described by Kunz and co-workers comprising the immunodominant (PDTRP) sequence of the VNTR domain of MUC1, adorned with the sT t antigen and connected to a T-ceii epitope (OVA323 -339) known to be presented to MHC ciass ii moiecuies... 

In the recently described two-component vaccine 45, the MUCl tandem repeat carrying three Tn-antigens within the immunodominant peptide motifs PDTR and GSTA was covalently connected via a polar spacer with the universal human and murine T-cell epitope P30 from tetanus toxoid (Scheme 12). 

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