Peptide-based immunization therapy for treatment of atherosclerosis

Abstract

The present invention relates to a fragment of apolipoprotein B, for immunization for prophylactic or therapeutic treatment of mammals, including humans, against ischemic cardiovascular diseases, in particular myocardial infarction or stroke, as well as diagnosing the presence or absence of antibodies related to increased or decreased risk of developing ischemic cardiovascular diseases including stroke, using said peptide in an assay, pharmaceutical compositions comprising the peptide. The invention further encompasses a particular peptide sequence aggravating disease, which sequence then can be used for diagnostic assays.

1 - 23 . (canceled)  
     
     
         24 . A method of diagnosing the presence or absence of antibodies related to increased or decreased risk of developing ischemic cardiovascular diseases, using the fragment having the sequence  
       
         
           
                 
                 
                 
               
                     
                 
                   NH 2 -YSKVHNGSEILFSYFQDLVIT-COOH 
                   SEQ. ID. NO. 2 
                     
                 
                     
                 
             
                
                
                
               
            
           
         
       
       in an assay.  
     
     
         25 . The method according to  claim 24 , wherein the assay is an immunoassay.  
     
     
         26 . The method according to  claim 25 , wherein the immunoassay is an ELISA, RIA, and/or Western blotting.  
     
     
         27 . The method of diagnosing the presence or absence of T cells related to increased or decreased risk of developing ischemic cardiovascular diseases, using the fragment which is encoded by the peptide sequence NH 2 —PTVMDFRKFSRNYQLYKSVSLPS—COOH (SEQ. ID. NO. 1) or an active part of this peptide in an assay.  
     
     
         28 . The method according to  claim 27 , wherein the assay is an immunoassay.  
     
     
         29 . The method according to  claim 28 , wherein the immunoassay is a flow cytometry, ELISPOT and/or ELISA.  
     
     
         30 . The method according to  claim 28 , wherein the immunoassay is a flow cytometric analysis that employs the peptide of NH 2 —PTVMDFRKFSRNYQLYKSVSLPS—COOH (SEQ. ID. NO. 1) bound to an oligomeric complex of recombinant HLA protein.