| abstract |
The present invention provides compositions, methods and uses of recombinant nucleic acids for eliciting Th1 or Th2-mediated immune responses in an individual. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a first nucleic acid segment encoding an MHC-II trafficking signal and a second nucleic acid segment encoding a polytope peptide and a Th1-specific polarizing epitope or epitope. specific polarizing of Th2. Optionally, the Th1-specific polarization epitope or the Th2-specific polarization epitope is part of the polytope peptide. The recombinant nucleic acid can be inserted into a viral, bacterial or yeast expression vector such that the recombinant protein encoded by the recombinant nucleic acid can be expressed in an antigen presenting cell of an individual for cause a Th1 or Th2 polarization immune response in the individual. |