| 摘要 |
The present invention relates generally to amino acid sequences and analogues thereof and more particularly to amino acid sequences and analogues thereof corresponding to CLIP peptides which facilitate or effect immunosuppression or immunomodulation in a human or animal subject. The present invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising CLIP peptide sequences and derivatives and analogues thereof which interact with MHC class II molecules, either non-specifically or haplotype-specifically, thereby preventing, inhibiting, delaying or otherwise suppressing an immune response when administered to an animal. The present invention is particularly useful in the treatment of autoimmune disorders or any prophylactic or other medical treatment wherein the suppression of an immune response is desirable, for example following transplantation procedures. Furthermore, high-affinity haplotype-specific CLIP analogues of the present invention permits the development of diagnostics reagents for determining the contribution of a particular MHC class II haplotype to an autoimmune disease and more preferably, diagnostic reagents for determining an individual's haplotype and genetic predisposition to an autoimmune disease. |
