Patent ID: 8217016

Claim:
A method for preparing a pharmaceutical composition comprising an RNA which codes for an antigen from a tumour comprising: (a) preparing a tumour tissue cDNA library from tumour tissue from a patient comprising: (i) comparing the sequences of a cDNA library from healthy tissue to the sequences of the cDNA from tumour tissue; and (ii) identifying cDNA sequences which are present exclusively in the tumour tissue cDNA library and code for tumour-specific antigens of said patient based upon an alignment with the cDNA library from healthy tissue, wherein the tumour tissue cDNA library is a subtraction library of the entire cDNA library from healthy tissue; (b) preparing a matrix for in vitro transcription of RNA using the tumour tissue cDNA library which is present exclusively in the tumour tissue cDNA library and codes for tumour-specific antigens of the patient; (c) transcribing the matrix in vitro; and (d) formulating the transcribed RNA into a pharmaceutical composition which does not comprise cells; wherein the tumour specific antigens are not present in non-tumour tissue.