| abstract |
A method of treating chronic hepatitis B is described, comprising administering a T cell-promoting amount of vaccine to a patient. The vaccine enhances the stability of the self-assembled particles and is engineered to be substantially free of nucleic acid binding by these particles, and the immunogenic amount of the chimeric carboxy-terminal truncated hepatitis B virus nucleocapsid (core) protein ( HBc). The chimeric protein molecule may comprise one or more immunogenic epitopes peptide-bound with one or more of the N-terminus, immunogenic loop or C-terminus of HBc. Enhanced stability of self-assembled particles is obtained by the presence of one or more heterocysteine residues in the vicinity of one or both of the amino- and carboxy-terminus of the chimeric molecule.n n n n Chronic hepatitis B, recombinant hepatitis B core (HBc) chimeric protein molecule, immunogenic particles, self-assembled particles, immunogenic epitopes |