Abstract: Anthrax vaccine compositions comprise a segment of a PA toxin protein that stimulates a B cell immune response specific for a defined epitope on the protective antigen of B. anthracis, a pharmaceutical excipient and optionally, one or more other protein segments comprising epitopes that augment the B cell response by stimulating a T cell immune response. The pharmaceutical compositions are useful for vaccinating individuals so as to confer protection from disease caused by B. anthracis including anthrax disease resulting from anthrax spore inhalation.

Abstract: Plasmid vectors are provided which enable for the modification of double-stranded DNA which has blunt or one-base 3' overhanging termini, to include any desired four-base 5' overhang sequence, in the reading frame of choice. These vectors enable the cloning of blunt double-stranded DNA sequences or double-stranded DNA sequences having a one-base 3' overhang into a unique restriction site by blunt-end ligation or by one-base 3' overhang cohesive cloning such as T-cloning. The vectors may be amplified and subsequently excised, thereby producing modified fragments free of vector sequences.

Abstract: This invention relates to the identification of short peptide segments of AIDS virus proteins which elicit T cellular immunity, and to a method of inducing cellular immunity to native proteins of the AIDS virus by immunization with short synthetic peptides. Five potential peptides have been identified by searching for regions which can fold as a maximally amphipathic helix. These may be useful to include in either a synthetic peptide- or recombinant fragment- based vaccine.