Synthetic Antigens and Vaccines

Abstract

Early studies in our laboratory have demonstrated that synthetic antigens containing an immunoreactive region of a protein can give rise to a specific, and often conformation-dependent, immune response towards the intact native protein (Arnon et al, 1971). When the protein in question is a component of a virus e.g. the coat protein of MS-2 coliphage, the antibodies induced by a synthetic fragment were capable of neutralizing the viability of the phage (Langbeheim et al, 1976). These findings paved the way for the study of synthetic vaccines. We have employed this approach for the study of three systems — the influenza virus and the bacterial toxins of cholera and shigella. The results achieved to date as well as the future prospects of these three synthetic vaccines are discussed below.KeywordsInfluenza VirusSynthetic PeptideCholera ToxinTetanus ToxoidAntigenic SiteThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.