B cell epitope mapping using synthetic peptides.

Synthetic peptides are used for identification of functional B cell epitopes in antibody preparations. ELISA-type assays are used to identify sequences of proteins comprising antibody-binding regions. This unit describes three peptide display formats.

A panel of MHC class I restricted viral peptides for use as a quality control for vaccine trial ELISPOT assays.

Vaccines in general and HIV vaccines in particular are focusing ever more on the induction of cellular immunity specifically the generation of cytotoxic T cells (CTL). As progress is made towards developing a safe and effective HIV vaccine, there is a need for a robust, sensitive and reproducible assay to evaluate vaccine-induced cellular immunogenicity in Phase II/III trials. The enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay fits these criteria and is a technology that is readily transferable and amenable to high-through-put screening.