Meiji Dairies Corporation

Meiji Milk Products Company, Limited

Kohsuke Kino

Kazuo Dairiki

Akinori Kume

Toshio Sone

Akiko Iwama

The T-cell epitope site on a Japanese cypress (hinoki) pollen allergen molecule has been identified by stimulating a T-cell line established from a patient suffering from Japanese cypress pollen allergy with an overlap peptide covering the primary structure of the Japanese cypress pollen allergen. The peptide is useful in peptide-based immunotherapy for patients with spring tree pollinosis including patients with Japanese cypress pollinosis having cross reactivity with Japanese cypress pollen. The peptide is also useful for diagnosing spring tree pollinosis.

T-cell epitope peptides

T cell epitope peptide

A peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent effective for every allergy patient is provided. A reagent for typing HLA class II molecules of the patient to be used in selecting a peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent effective for every allergy patient is also provided. The peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent enables the optimal peptide-based immunotherapy for each patient, so that a marked improvement in peptide-immunotherapy can be expected. The peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent is also effective for patients who cannot be treated by peptide-based immunotherapy using major antigen peptide recognized in a particular patient population. Furthermore, the peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent enables simple and easy typing of HLA class II molecules of allergy patients.

Peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent

The present invention provides a monomolecular multi-epitope peptide prepared by binding T cell epitope regions derived from different allergen molecules with each other. A peptide-based immunotherapeutic agent containing an effective amount of the multi-epitope peptide can treat a wide range of allergic diseases.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Kohsuke Kino