Provided herein are nucleic acid sequences that encode novel consensus amino acid sequences of HA hemagglutinin and/or influenza B hemagglutinin, as well as genetic constructs/vectors and vaccines expressing the sequences. Also provided herein are methods for generating an immune response against one or more influenza A serotypes and/or influenza B serotypes, or combinations thereof, using the vaccines that are provided.

Novel vaccines are provided that elicit broadly neutralizing anti-influenza antibodies. Some vaccines comprise nanoparticles that display hemagglutinin trimers from influenza virus on their surface. The nanoparticles comprise fusion proteins comprising a monomeric subunit of ferritin joined to at least a portion of an influenza hemagglutinin protein. Some portions comprise the ectodomain while some portions are limited to the stem region. The fusion proteins self-assemble to form the hemagglutinin-displaying nanoparticles. Some vaccines comprise only the stem region of an influenza hemagglutinin protein joined to a trimerization domain. Such vaccines can be used to vaccinate an individual against infection by heterologous influenza viruses and influenza virus that are antigenically divergent from the virus from which the nanoparticle hemagglutinin protein was obtained. Also provided are fusion proteins and nucleic acid molecules encoding such proteins.

Novel nanoparticle fusion proteins comprising proteins or peptides fused to Dps (DNA binding protein from starved cells) proteins are provided which bring forth distinct advantages for development of new and improved vaccines, diagnostic tests, and other biomedical products.

Provided are a composition and a food or drink, having the effect of enhancing an immune response to an antigen, which is administered by another route such as subcutaneous injection, by orally administering to a subject, lactic acid bacteria, a culture thereof, a treated product thereof, or a composition comprising the same.

An oral ingestion composition, which comprises a lactic acid bacterium strain that is Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis enhancing the proliferation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) and the generation of antibodies, or a culture or treated product thereof, and is used in combination with an antigen as a vaccine, wherein the oral ingestion composition is for use in enhancing the proliferation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) specific to the antigen and the generation of antibodies specific to the antigen.

The present invention relates to certain polyphenol(s) having adjuvant property that can be used for the vaccine preparation. Also, the current invention provides adjuvant system comprising said polyphenol(s) and delivery system such as an immunostimulating reconstituted influenza virosomes (IRIVs). The present invention illustrates the said polyphenol(s) or an adjuvant system comprising of such polyphenol(s) and IRIVs can provide better level of immune response against antigen of interest than conventional vaccine systems. The preferred polyphenol according to the present invention can be beta-sitosterol. Beta-sitosterol can be optionally combined with the known adjuvant(s) to enhance immune response.

The present invention provides, among other things, a novel and improved method for generating mosaic influenza antigenic polypeptides including hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) polypeptides based on unique combination of epitope patterns that maximize exposure to epitopes present across multiple HA or NA sequences and therefore improved influenza strain coverage. In particular, the present invention provides engineered H1N1 influenza hemagglutinin (HA) polypeptides that are comprised of novel combinations of protective epitopes and antigenic regions from multiple H1N1 viral strains. Such engineered HA polypeptides have improved properties over HA polypeptides developed through conventional approaches that rely on consensus alignments of viral sequences.

In some embodiments the present invention provides influenza hemagglutinin (HA) polypeptides, proteins, and protein complexes that comprise a stalk domain that is engineered to facilitate maintenance of its native trimeric conformation, even if the head domain of the HA protein is removed or disrupted. In some embodiments, the present invention provides compositions comprising such polypeptides, proteins, and protein complexes, and methods of use of such proteins and compositions, for example as vaccine immunogens.

Provided herein are nucleic acid sequences that encode novel consensus amino acid sequences of HA hemagglutinin and/or influenza B hemagglutinin, as well as genetic constructs/vectors and vaccines expressing the sequences. Also provided herein are methods for generating an immune response against one or more influenza A serotypes and/or influenza B serotypes, or combinations thereof, using the vaccines that are provided.

Compositions and methods, including vaccines and pharmaceutical compositions for inducing or enhancing an immune response are disclosed based on the discovery of useful immunological adjuvant properties in a synthetic, glucopyranosyl lipid adjuvant (GLA) that is provided in substantially homogeneous form. Chemically defined, synthetic GLA offers a consistent vaccine component from lot to lot without the fluctuations in contaminants or activity that compromise natural-product adjuvants. Also provided are vaccines and pharmaceutical compositions that include GLA and one or more of an antigen, a Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonist, a co-adjuvant and a carrier such as a pharmaceutical carrier.

The present invention discloses and claims virus like particles (VLPs) that express and/or contains seasonal influenza virus proteins, avian influenza virus proteins and/or influenza virus proteins from viruses with pandemic potential. The invention includes vector constructs comprising said proteins, cells comprising said constructs, formulations and vaccines comprising VLPs of the inventions. The invention also includes methods of making and administrating VLPs to vertebrates, including methods of inducing substantial immunity to either seasonal and avian influenza, or at least one symptom thereof.