Inventors:
Ofer Levy - Jamaica Plain MA, US
Michael Wessels - Brookline MA, US
Richard Miller - Maplewood MN, US
Mark Tomai - Woodbury MN, US
Assignee:
3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY - Saint Paul MN
CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER CORPORATION - Boston MA
International Classification:
A61K 39/39, A61K 39/12, A61K 39/02, A61K 31/4745, A61P 35/00, A61K 45/00, A61P 37/04, A61P 31/04, A61P 31/12, A61K 39/00, A61K 31/7105
US Classification:
4242041, 4241841, 4242341, 4242771, 4242781
Abstract:
The present invention is based on the surprising discovery that agonists of TLR8 are uniquely efficacious in enhancing (e.g. inducing) the immune response of newborns. Thus, agonists of TLR8 serve as both vaccine adjuvants and as adjunctive therapies for acute infection in newborns, preferably the agonist is a TLR8-selective agonist. The immune response induced, or enhanced, in the neonatal host can be, for example, a cytokine immune response and/or a humoral immune response (e.g., antigen-specific).