NIP-specific DNA vaccine

The NIP-specific DNA vaccine is an experimental DNA plasmid construct developed within the Vaccibody platform (now Nykode Therapeutics) to serve as a non-targeted negative control in immunotherapy research. It encodes a homodimeric fusion protein consisting of three functional modules: a targeting unit, a dimerization unit, and an antigenic unit. In this specific construct, the targeting unit is a single-chain variable fragment (scFv) specific for the synthetic hapten 5-iodo-4-hydroxy-3-nitrophenylacetyl (NIP). Because NIP is not naturally present in mammalian organisms, the secreted protein does not bind to any endogenous receptors, effectively acting as a non-targeted delivery system. This construct is used in preclinical studies, particularly for B-cell malignancies like chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), to establish a baseline for immune responses against tumor-specific idiotypes when compared to vaccines that actively target antigen-presenting cells (APCs) via MHC class II or chemokine receptors.

Other names

anti-NIP Vaccibodynon-targeted control DNA vaccineNIP-targeted Vaccibody control