L.E.A.P.S.™ Scientific Backgrounder

L.E.A.P.S.™ (Ligand Epitope Antigen Presentation System) is a CEL-SCI patented platform technology designed to stimulate antigen-specific immune responses in T-cells using synthetic peptides (see Figure below). L.E.A.P.S.™ constructs physically link the antigenic peptide with a T-cell binding ligand and are delivered directly to the immune system by injection or mucosal absorption, dramatically enhancing T-cell responses to a particular antigen.

The antigenic constructs can be designed to preferentially elicit either a primarily (cellular) Th1 response or a humoral (antibody mediated) Th2 response. This technology is being used to develop treatments and/or vaccines against a number of target diseases, including herpes simplex and malaria, as well as autoimmune myocarditis.

CEL-SCI has received US Government Phase I & II funding (SBIR) of over $864,000 to continue preclinical studies aimed at determining the effectiveness of several L.E.A.P.S.™ hybrid antigen/T-cell binding peptide constructs to treat and/or prevent Herpes Simplex Virus infection.