Protective antigen of epstein barr virus
AssigneeThe Rockefeller University
InventorsRalph M. Steinman, Christan Muenz
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Abstract
The present invention relates to the identification of a subunit vaccine to prevent or treat infection of Epstein Barr Virus. In particular, EBNA-1 was identified as a vaccine antigen. In a specific embodiment, a purified protein corresponding to EBNA-1 elicited a strong CD4+ T cell response. The responsive CD4+ T cell are primarily TH1 in function. EBNA-1 is an attractive candidate for a protective vaccine against EBV, and for immunotherapy of EBV infection and neoplasms, particularly with dendritic cells charged with EBNA-1.
Claims6
A method for making a human dendritic cell capable of eliciting an immune response to EBV-infected cells, which method comprises contacting a human dendritic cell with an isolated nucleic acid encoding an EBNA-1 polypeptide in humans;
- wherein the dendritic cell is capable of eliciting an immune response to an EBV-infected cell.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.