This invention relates to an immunogen comprising a gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) peptide sequence, a kisspeptin peptide sequence and a stimulant of raising an immune response, such an immunogen for use in a method to regulate the release of hormones in a vertebrate including modulation of reproductive hormones, to reduce fertility in a vertebrate and to treat hormone-dependent diseases including hormone-dependent tumours including prostate tumours, breast, ovary and endometrial tumours, benign hyperplasia including benign prostatic hyperplasia and uterine fibroids, endometriosis, polycystic ovarian disease, infertility, sexual dysfunction and any disorder that would benefit from an increased or decreased GnRH-dependent activity and a vaccine formulation comprising the immunogen. The invention also relates to the use of the immunogen in the preparation of a medicament for use in a method to regulate the release of hormones in a vertebrate.

A vaccine adjuvant and immunogenic composition may be described herein. The vaccine adjuvant may comprise cell wall fragments of the genus Mycobacterium, and more particularly, of M avium. The immunogenic composition may include the vaccine adjuvant conjugated to an antigen. For example, cell wall fragments of M. avium (herein also referred to as MAF) may be conjugated to an antigen targeting Gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH). The MAF-antigen conjugate may be delivered for the purposes of treatment through one of several methods, including intramuscular injection, naso-pharyngeal, or oral.

The present invention provides compositions and methods useful for regulating fertilization and for use as a contraceptive based on the discovery herein of an oocyte specific protein, SAS1R (Sperm Acrosomal SLLP1 Receptor), which is a sperm protein receptor. Six SAS1R variants, including the full length SAS1R, were identified. mSLLP1 and SAS1R co-localized to oocytes and to acrosomes of acrosome-reacted sperm. Interactions between mSLLP1 and SAS1R were demonstrated by far-western analysis, in a yeast two-hybrid system under stringent selection conditions, and by immunoprecipitation of SAS1R by anti-mSLLP1 as well as the converse. Purified recombinant SAS1R was found to have protease activity, to inhibit fertilization in-vitro, and to induce an immune response in females. Together, the results suggest SAS1R is a proteolytically active, oocyte and early embryo specific oolemmal metalloprotease receptor for the sperm intra-acrosomal ligand SLLP1 and is a target for regulating fertilization and as a contraceptive.

A composition includes a contraceptive chimeric virus-like particle with an antigenic carrier domain and one or more antigenic regions from a sperm cell in the antigenic carrier domain, with the antigenic carrier domain including human papillomavirus L1 capsid protein and the antigenic regions including one or more structural elements of the Catsper ion channel complex. When administered to a patient, the contraceptive vaccine stimulates production of anti-sperm antibodies that, upon binding to a sperm cell, inhibit the sperm cell's motility and thus inhibit the ability of the sperm cell to fertilize an egg cell. The induced immunoinfertility of the composition can be reversed for brief or extended lengths of time by overdosing the patient with a reversal agent lacking the antigenic carrier domain but having a protein sequence substantially identical to that of the one or more antigenic regions to sequester the anti-sperm antibodies.

The disclosure relates to immunogenic fusion protein compositions and methods of use thereof for preventing or treating pneumococcal infection. The disclosure relates to methods of producing and purifying immunogenic fusion proteins. This disclosure further relates to compositions and formulations comprising immunogenic fusion proteins.

The invention provides a contraceptive vaccine for a female recipient of a target species of mammals including a composition of at least one of a plurality of granulosa cells and a plurality of ovarian stromal cells in combination with an adjuvant; wherein the cells are grown from a tissue sample of the cells obtained from at least one female donor of the target species which is not the same individual as the female recipient. The invention also provides a method of producing the contraceptive vaccine as well as a method of treating a female recipient with the contraceptive vaccine to prevent pregnancy.

An adjuvant composition which comprises an anionic macromolecule component particularly an ionic polysaccharide such as DEAE-dextran, and a saponin component, particularly an immunostimulating complex component. Immunogenic compositions comprising an immunogen and this adjuvant composition are also disclosed together with methods of use thereof.

The present invention relates to virus-like particles of plant virus Cucumber Mosaic Virus (CMV), and in particular to modified VLPs of CMV comprising Th cell epitopes, in particular universal Th cell epitopes. Furthermore, these modified VLPs serve as, preferably, vaccine platform, for generating immune responses, in particular antibody responses, against antigens linked to said modified VLPs. The presence of the Th cell epitopes, in particular universal Th cell epitopes, led to a further increase in the generated immune response.