INTERFERON TAU MUTANTS AND METHODS FOR MAKING THEM

摘要

The present invention is directed to the field of animal and human health, and more particularly to pharmacological uses of analogs or mutants of interferon-tau (IFN- tau ) that differ from native IFN- tau because of substitutions of amino acids near the amino terminus of the IFN- tau molecule that impart improved biological activity. The IFN- tau mutants described in this disclosure have low toxicity, retain the same or slightly reduced antiviral activity compared with highly effective IFN-alpha, and have enhanced antiproliferative activity compared to native IFN-tau, making them useful in treating viral infections, cancer, and immune system diseases including autoimmune diseases. The present invention is also directed to a method for making novel recombinant proteins, especially interferons, interleukins, and cytokines, polypeptide hormones and other biopharmaceuticals that have improved biological activity over known proteins and/or lower toxicity and/or increased stability.