Abstract: A vaccine based method for the prevention of HIV infection, suitable for HIV negative persons, is described. The method comprises the combination of (a) an immunization with material containing foreign MHC class II and (b) receiving a preparation containing the same foreign MHC class II, for example (i) taken orally and optimally taken at the time of, or immediately before, or immediately after, exposure or possible exposure to HIV or (ii) applied to the vagina or the anus at, or close to, times of exposure and times of possible exposure to HIV.

Abstract: A preventive vaccine for AIDS, suitable for HIV negative persons, is described.

Abstract: The invention describes methods for proteomic analysis, with multiple applications that involve the mapping of samples in an N-dimensional shape space. The applications include the classification of samples on the basis of the three-dimensional shapes of substances they contain, which leads to novel diagnostic methods that are linked to new kinds of preventive and therapeutic vaccines. A panel of N reagents, for example proteins, called X(j), with j=1 to N, is used. With N>>1, these reagents are used to define an N-dimensional shape space with approximately orthogonal axes. The binding strength of each of the X(j) reagents to each other, as measured, for example, by an ELISA assay, is a N×N matrix K. The matrix K is used to define another set of N reagents called Y(j), with j=1 to N, each of which is a linear combination of the X(j) reagents and each of which is tailored to be complementary to the corresponding X(j) reagent.

Abstract: The invention describes methods for proteomic analysis involving the mapping of samples in N-dimensional shape space. The applications include the classification of samples on the basis of the three-dimensional shapes of substances they contain. A panel of P (>>1) reagents, with P?N, called X(j), with j=1 to P, is used. The binding strength of each of the X(j) reagents to each other is a P×P matrix. This matrix is used to define another set of P reagents called Y(j), with j=1 to P, each of which is a linear combination of the X(j) reagents and each of which is complementary to one of the X(j) reagents. N of the X(j) reagents together with the corresponding Y(j) reagents are used to define a shape space that has N approximately orthogonal axes. The definition of these axes facilitates classification of samples. Methods for measuring similarity between pairs of samples and between sets of samples in the context of the set of N reagent pairs X(j) and Y(j) with j=1 to N are described.