Patent ID: 8003115

Claim:
A method of modulating an immune response in an individual comprising administering to an individual a linear chimeric immunomodulatory compound (CIC) in an amount sufficient to modulate an immune response in said individual, wherein the linear CIC comprises a structure N 1 —S 1 —N 2 —S 2 —N 3 , wherein N 1 , N 2 , and N 3 are independently selected nucleic acid moieties comprising 3 to 7 bases, at least one of N 1 , N 2 , and N 3 has the sequence 5′-[(X) 0-2 ]TCG[(X) 2-4 ]-3′, wherein each X is an independently selected nucleotide; wherein S 1 is a non-nucleic acid spacer moiety covalently bound to N 1 and N 2 ; S 2 is a non-nucleic acid spacer moiety covalently bound to N 2 and N 3 ; S 1 and S 2 are the same or different; each of S 1 and S 2 comprises hexaethylene glycol (HEG), triethyleneglycol (TEG), propyl, butyl, or hexyl; and wherein said CIC has at least one immunomodulatory activity selected from the group consisting of (i) the ability to stimulate interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) production by human peripheral blood mononuclear cells and (ii) the ability to stimulate interferon-alpha (IFN-α) production by human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.