IC31 nanoparticles

1. A method of producing a pharmaceutical composition in an aqueous mixture form, wherein the pharmaceutical composition comprises a peptide with the amino acid sequence KLKL 5 KLK (SEQ ID NO:1) and an oligodeoxynucleotide with the nucleic acid sequence (dIdC) 13 (SEQ ID NO:2) wherein the peptide and the oligodeoxynucleotide are present as stable complexes, comprising

mixing the peptide and the oligodeoxynucleotide, wherein:

the peptide is present at a concentration of at least 100 nmol/mL and the oligodeoxynucleotide is present at a concentration of at least 4 nmol/mL,

the molar ratio of the peptide to the oligodeoxynucleotide is between 20:1 and 50:1,

the mean particle size of the stable complexes comprising the peptide and the oligodeoxynucleotide is less than 1 μm, and

applying an energy input to the aqueous mixture, wherein the energy input is applied as a heating step to 40° C. to 60° C. or as a combination of a heating step and homogenization and/or sonication; and

wherein:

optionally, the composition comprises sodium ions at a concentration from 0 to 25 mM,

optionally, the composition comprises Ca 2+ ions, phosphate ions, citrate ions or acetate ions at a concentration of less than 1 mM each,

optionally, the composition comprises a buffer system or a combination of buffer systems, with a pH of 5.5-9.5,

optionally, the composition has a viscosity of less than 15 cP, and optionally, the composition is sterile.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the optional buffer system comprises a Tris, a Histidine, a carbonate, a bicarbonate, a 2-(N-morpholino) ethanesulfonic acid (MES) or a 3-(N-morpholino) propanesulfonic acid (MOPS) buffer system.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the buffer system comprises 1-50 mM Tris, pH 6-9, 5 mM MES, pH 5-7, 5 mM MOPS, pH 6-7, 1-50 mM Histidine, pH 5-8 or 10 mM ammonium bicarbonate, pH 7.5-8.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the combination of buffer systems in the composition results from combining an antigen formulation buffered in one system with the amino acid sequence and oligodeoxynucleotide composition buffered in another system.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the pharmaceutical composition is a vaccine and contains an antigen.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein the pharmaceutical composition further contains an antigen derived from a human pathogen.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the pharmaceutical composition contains one or more carbohydrates.

8. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the antigen of a human pathogen is from a virus, a bacterium, a fungus or a parasite.

9. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the antigen is a peptide or a polypeptide.

10. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the antigen is derived from Influenza virus, Hepatitis A, B or C virus (HAV, HBV, HCV), Human Papilloma virus (HPV), Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV), Herpes Simplex virus (HSV), Parvovirus B19, Tick Borne Encephalitis virus (TBEV), Dengue virus (DENV), Japanese Encephalitis virus (JEV), West Nile virus (WNV), Yellow Fever virus (YFV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Helicobacter pylori, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae, Chlamydia pneumoniae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis, Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia afzelii, Borrelia garinii, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium, Escherichia coli, Clostridium difficile, Shigella flexneri, Campylobacter jejuni, Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, Aspergillus spp. or Candida albicans.

11. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the antigen of a human pathogen is selected from the group comprising a CD8 + CTL peptide, a CD4 + Th peptide, a polypeptide, a protein, a glycoprotein, a lipoprotein, a virus particle and a whole cell or a subunit thereof.

12. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the one or more carbohydrates are sucrose and/or sorbitol.

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition is sterilized by filtration.

14. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the heating step is performed to 40° C. to 45° C.

15. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the heating step is performed for 2 minutes to 60 minutes.

16. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the heating step is performed for 5 minutes to 30 minutes.

17. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the heating step is performed for 10 minutes to 20 minutes.