Peptide length requirement for experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in guinea pigs

Abstract
Three peptides overlapping the tryptophan region of bovine CNS myelin basic protein were synthesized by the solid phase procedure of Merrifield. These were the nonapeptide H-Phe-Ser-Trp-Gly-Ala-Glu-Gly-Gln-Lys-OH, the octapeptide H-Ser-Trp-Gly-Ala-Glu-Gly-Gln-Lys-OH, and the heptapeptide H-Trp-Gly-Ala-Glu-Gly-Gln-Lys-OH. They were tested fro encephalitogenic activity in guinea pigs with either Freund's complete adjuvant containingM. tuberculosis or muramyl dipeptide in incomplete Freud's adjuvant at doses of 10 μg per animal. The results show that deletion of one or two residues from the amino-terminal end of the nonapeptide destroyed the ability of the shorter peptides to induce clinical but not histological signs of EAE.