Vaccines for conferring immunity in mammals to infective pathogens are provided, as well as vectors and methods for plastid transformation of plants to produce protective antigens and vaccines for oral delivery. The vaccines are operative by parenteral administration as well. The invention also extends to the transformed plants, plant parts, and seeds and progeny thereof. The invention is applicable to monocot and dicot plants.

Increased antigenicity of a membrane-bound polypeptide produced from a plant is provided in a process in which extraction of the polypeptide or other compounds from the plant is such that phospholipids are associated with the polypeptide. Reducing fat by supercritical fluid extraction increases antigenicity of such plant-produced membrane-bound polypeptides. Methods and means of producing such membrane-bound polypeptides are provided. Methods to produce a protective response in animals are provided by administering to the animal the membrane-bound polypeptide. Binding of antibody specific to the membrane-bound polypeptide is increased. The process provides for increased preferred formation of the membrane-bound polypeptide. Stability of the membrane-bound polypeptide is increased when the plant material is defatted.

A recombinant vector for transforming a plant, a plant transformed with the recombinant vector, a plant-made classical swine fever virus antigen pmE2 protein expressed in the plant and uses thereof is provided. By using a recombinant vector having a polynucleotide encoding a GP55 protein of CSFV according to the present invention; and a polynucleotide encoding a cellulose-binding domain protein; and a plant transformed with the recombinant vector, a plant-made classical swine fever virus antigen pmE2 protein may be produced with high efficiency, and has higher safety and stability than those achieved by other production methods. Also, since the plant-derived classical swine fever virus antigen protein pmE2 has a cellulose-binding domain (CBD) protein, it may be usefully used as an effective marker to determine a virus exposure pathway and an antibody producing pathway.

The present invention relates to vaccines that are made in transgenic soybeans for use in humans, animals of agricultural importance, pets, and wildlife. These vaccines are used as vaccines against viral, bacterial, fungal, parasitic or prion related diseases, cancer antigens, toxins, and autologous or self proteins. The transgenic soybeans of the instant invention also can be used for inducing tolerance to allergens or tolerance to autoimmune antigens, wherein an individual shows hypersensitivity to said allergen or has developed autoimmunity to autologous or self proteins, respectively. The invention also relates to prophylatically treating individuals and/or populations prior to showing hypersensitivity to allergens. Other aspects of the invention include using the transgenic soybeans as an oral contraceptive, and the expression of protein adjuvants in transgenic soybeans.

Vaccines for conferring immunity in mammals to infective pathogens are provided, as well as vectors and methods for plastid transformation of plants to produce protective antigens and vaccines for oral delivery. The vaccines are operative by parenteral administration as well. The invention also extends to the transformed plants, plant parts, and seeds and progeny thereof. The invention is applicable to monocot and dicot plants.

Delivery systems and methods are provided for delivering a biologically active protein to a host animal. The systems and methods provided include obtaining an algal cell transformed by an expression vector, the expression vector comprising a nucleotide sequence coding for the biologically active protein, operably linked to a promoter. In one illustrated embodiment, the biologically active protein is an antigenic epitope and upon administration to the animal the algal cell induces an immune response in the host animal.

Disclosed are methods in which glucose metabolism is correlated to oncogenesis through certain specific pathways; inhibition of certain enzymes is shown to interfere with oncogenic signaling, and measurement of certain enzyme levels is correlated with patient survival. The present methods comprise measuring level of expression of at least one of the enzymes involved in glucose uptake or metabolism, wherein increased expression of the at least one of the enzymes relative to expression in a normal cell correlates with poor prognosis of disease in a patient. Preferably the genes whose expression level is measured include GLUT3, PFKP, GAPDH, ALDOC, LDHA and GFPT2. Also disclosed are embodiments directed towards downregulating the expression of some genes in glucose uptake and metabolism.

The present invention generally relates to the field of plant molecular biology and biotechnology as it applies to the production of plant-derived vaccines. More particularly, the present invention pertains to recombinant DNA molecules encoding a chimeric tetravalent dengue virus antigen, and vectors, transgenic plastids, transgenic plant cells, transgenic plants and transgenic parts of such plants comprising said recombinant DNA molecules as well as useful for preparing genetically transformed plant and plant cells. The invention includes plant optimized genes that encode chimeric tetravalent dengue virus antigen. The chimeric tetravalent dengue virus antigen is preferably a polyprotein comprising the immunoglobulin-like domain of the envelope protein of the dengue virus serotype-1, the immunoglobulin-like domain of the envelope protein of the dengue virus serotype-2, the immunoglobulin-like domain of the envelope protein of the dengue virus serotype-3 and the immunoglobulin-like domain of the envelope protein of the dengue virus serotype-4. The transgenic plastids, transgenic plant cells, transgenic plants and transgenic parts of such plants are preferably of the Asteraceae family.

The present invention is to a safe, biodegradable trace metal binding system that effectively delivers chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, selenium and zinc to animals. The method of preparing an animal foodstuff composition involves the steps of: providing transgenic algal cells comprising a nucleotide sequence, the nucleotide sequence being capable of expressing a non-native metal-binding protein in the transgenic algal cells; binding the metal-binding protein with at least one metal so as to produce a metal-bound adduct of the metal-binding protein; and admixing the metal-bound adduct with animal foodstuff. The invention is also to a animal foodstuff composition comprising animal foodstuff and transgenic algal cells expressing a non-native metal-binding protein in the transgenic algal cells, such that the transgenic algal cells contain the metal-binding protein and the metal-binding protein being bound to a metal.

The present invention encompasses BTV vaccines or compositions. The vaccine or composition may be a vaccine or composition containing BTV antigens. The invention also encompasses recombinant vectors encoding and expressing BTV antigens, epitopes or immunogens which can be used to protect animals, such as ovines, bovines, or caprines, against BTV.