Patent ID: 7211408

Claim:
A method for designing an isolated peptide having an amino terminus and a carboxy terminus comprising at least two regions each having human T cell stimulating activity, wherein said regions comprise an epitope of a protein allergen selected from one or both of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus I (Der p I) and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus II (Der p II), and wherein said regions are arranged from the amino terminus to the carboxy terminus in a different order than the regions in the naturally-occurring protein allergen, comprising the steps of: a) dividing amino acid sequence of the protein allergen into at least two regions; b) determining whether the regions of step (a) have T cell stimulating activity; c) arranging the regions to form at least one peptide in which the regions are arranged from the amino terminus to the carboxy terminus in a different order than the regions in the naturally-occurring protein allergen; and d) producing at least one peptide having the arrangement of the regions of step (c).