Relationship between antigenicity and immunogenicity of chimeric hepatitis B virus core particles carrying HIV type 1 epitopes.
We have developed a comparative study of antigenic and immunogenic properties of selected immunodominant HIV-1 epitopes from p24 and gp120 proteins added to C-terminally truncated hepatitis B virus (HBV) core protein and exposed on the surface of chimeric core particles. Inserted p24 (121-210) and gp120/MN (306-328) epitopes induced the appropriate humoral and cellular immune responses against HIV-1. Superficially exposed region 160-192 of p24 also showed maximal B cell immunogenicity whereas buried region 148-162 induced maximal T cell response. Both recombinant proteins were also able to be recognized in vitro by T lymphocytes of HIV-1 asymptomatic carriers.
The article covers the modem concept of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) pharmacogenomics. Special attention is payed to polymorphism of CYP2C19 gene and its influence on the metabolism of modern antisecretory agents, such as proton pump inhibitors (PPI). The authors summarize data which demonstrate that the differences in the pharmacodynamics and clinical effects of PPI are caused by CYP2C19 gene polymorphism. The paper shows that this factor should be considered when planning GERD therapy with PPI in order to achieve a complete remission and make the therapy economically rational.