| abstract |
The present invention provides recombinant bicistronic flaviviruses, particularly live attenuated recombinant bicistronic flavivirus, which comprise, in order from 5′ to 3′, a viral 5′UTR, an ORF encoding all viral proteins, an internal ribosome entry site, an exogenous nucleotide sequence that encodes an exogenous polypeptide, and a viral 3′UTR. Infection of a host cell with a recombinant flavivirus provides for expression of the exogenous nucleic acid in a host cell. Such recombinant flavivirus are useful for delivering a protein to a mammalian host; and for eliciting an immune response to the exogenous polypeptide. |