title: The potential of immunization with synthetic peptides to overcome the immunosuppressive effect of maternal anti-measles virus antibodies in young mice.
abstract: In this paper, we describe the results of experiments designed to test the hypothesis that immunogenic synthetic peptides representing non-immunodominant B- and T-cell epitopes of measles virus (MV) proteins can overcome the suppressive effect of maternal antibodies and induce anti-MV antibodies in young mice in the presence of maternal antibody to the virus. We have established a mouse model of immunosuppression by maternal antibody of both anti-MV and anti-peptide antibody responses in the young. Results obtained with this model immunization of young mice with a cocktail of synthetic peptides can overcome the suppression by maternal anti-MV antibodies and results in the induction of anti-peptide antibodies which recognize the virus. This work indicates that appropriately selected synthetic peptides have potential as vaccines which can be immunogenic and induce antibodies reactive with the virus-virus antibodies. in the presence of maternal anit-virus antibodies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, U.K.
authors.forename: O E
authors.initials: OE
authors.lastname: Obeid
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Steward
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000276:immunology; D006224:Cricetinae; D005260:Female; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000276:immunology; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired; D007114:Immunization; D008459:Measles virus / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D000956:Antigens, Viral; D010446:Peptide Fragments