IMMUNOGENIC GLYCOPEPTIDES, SCREENING, PREPARATION AND USES

摘要

The invention concerns immunogenic glycopeptides derived from pathogenic micro-organisms, useful for vaccination and diagnosis of infections caused by said pathogenic micro-organisms (bacteria or fungi), and methods for selecting them and preparing them. Said glycopeptides are selected in the group consisting of: a1) glycopeptides essentially consisting of a glycosylated T epitope, comprising 14 to 25 amino acids, among which at least a neutral amino acid is bound to a di- or to a trisaccharide (glycoside linkage) and at least 15 % among said amino acids are proline, one of the proline being located in position -1 to -4, relative to the position of said neutral amino acid, which glycopeptides are: exhibited by a class II MHC molecule, specifically identified by T CD+4 lymphocytes induced by immunisation with the native glycopeptide from which they are derived, but are not identified by the T CD+4 lymphocytes induced by immunisation with a non-glycosylated peptide of same sequence and capable of inducing a proliferation of said T CD+4 lymphocytes by which they are identified and the secretion of cytokines by said lymphocytes and b1) glycopeptides having a sequence of 15 to 39 amino acids including the sequence of the glycopeptide as defined in a1), excluding the glycopeptide of sequence SEQ ID NO:11.