title: Designing a new generation of anti-hCG vaccines for cancer therapy.
abstract: The heterodimeric 'pregnancy-specific' hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) has been used as the basis for a contraceptive vaccine. More recently, the observation that hCG, particularly in the form of the beta-chain expressed in the absence of alpha-chain, is aberrantly expressed in a number of different tumors has opened up a second potential application for such vaccines. Drawbacks of the currently available vaccines are that they are either relatively weakly immunogenic or that they induce antibodies that cross-react with human leuteinizing hormone (hLH). We have explored the possibility of creating mutated versions of the hCG beta-chain with improved immunologic properties.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology and Molecular Pathology, Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, 46 Cleveland Street, London W1T 4JF, United Kingdom. p.delves@ucl.ac.uk
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Delves
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Iles
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Roitt
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lund
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm / Q000276:immunology; D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D015195:Drug Design; D005260:Female; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D018448:Models, Immunological; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy*; D011247:Pregnancy; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic; D018698:Glutamic Acid