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.

New influenza donor strains for the production of reassortant influenza A viruses are provided.

Provided are compounds of Formula (II) that enhance the efficacy of viruses by increasing spread of the virus in cells, increasing the titer of virus in cells, or increasing the antigen expression from a virus, gene or trans-gene expression from a virus, or virus protein expression in cells. Other uses, compositions and methods of using same are also provided. Compounds of Formula (II): ##STR00001##

Described herein is a method of enhancing virus replication in permissive cells that express a receptor to FGF2 protein. The method includes administering FGF2 protein or a functional variant thereof and the virus to the permissive cells. An oncolytic virus having a genome that includes an open reading frame that encodes FGF2 protein or a functional variant thereof is also described.

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.

The present invention relates to recombinant microalgal cells and their use in heterologous protein production, methods of production of heterologous polypeptides in microalgal extracellular bodies, microalgal extracellular bodies comprising heterologous polypeptides, and compositions comprising the same.

The present invention describes a viral RNA expression plasmid and a method for obtaining viral particles based on the plasmids comprising transfecting animal cells with an expression vector or a set of expression vectors capable of expressing a nucleoprotein and RNA-dependent polymerase RNA; and transfecting the animal cell with an expression vector or a set of expression vectors with nucleotide sequences encoding recombinant RNA molecules.

Disclosed are compositions and methods for increasing virus production.

New influenza donor strains for the production of reassortant influenza A viruses are provided.

Compositions and methods to prepare influenza virus-like particles (VLPs) are provided.