Patent ID: 8357665

Claim:
An immune regulatory oligonucleotide (IRO) compound comprising at least two oligonucleotides linked by a non-nucleotide linker at their 3′ ends or by a functionalized sugar or by a functionalized base via a non-nucleotide linker, wherein at least one oligonucleotide has the structure 5′-N m —N 3 N 2 N 1 CGN 1 N 2 N 3 —N m -3′: wherein: CG is an oligonucleotide motif that is CpG, C*pG, C*pG* or CpG*, wherein C is cytosine, C* is a pyrimidine nucleotide derivative, G is guanosine, and G* is a purine nucleotide derivative; N 1 is a modified nucleoside that suppresses the activity of the oligonucleotide motif selected from the group consisting of 2′-substituted ribonucleoside, 2′-O-substituted ribonucleoside, 2′-substituted arabinoside, and 2′-O-substituted arabinoside; N 2 -N 3 , at each occurrence, is independently i) a nucleotide, ii) a nucleotide derivative, or iii) a modified nucleoside that suppresses the activity of the oligonucleotide motif selected from the group consisting of 2′-substituted ribonucleoside, 2′-O-substituted ribonucleoside, 2′-substituted arabinoside, and 2′-O-substituted arabinoside; N 1 -N 3 , at each occurrence, is independently i) a nucleotide, or ii) a nucleotide derivative; N n , and N m , at each occurrence, is independently a nucleotide, nucleotide derivative or non-nucleotide linkage; and further provided that the compound contains less than 3 consecutive guanosine nucleotides; wherein the oligonucleotide motif would be immune stimulatory but for the one or more modified nucleosides that suppress the activity of the oligonucleotide motif; wherein m is a number from 0 to about 30; wherein the IRO is an antagonist of an agonist of TLR7, TLR8 and/or TLR9; and provided that the at least two oligonucleotides are not antisense oligonucleotides.