POLYPEPTIDES, TRADITIONALLY OF THE HUMAN HERPES VIRUS TYPE 8 AND THE DIAGNOSTIC AND MEDICAL APPLICATION THEREOF

摘要

The invention relates to (poly)peptides which are recognized by anti-human herpes virus type 8 (HHV8) antibodies of patients infected with HHV8, whereby these (poly)peptides are not naturally occurring HHV8 proteins. The invention also relates to polymers comprising at least two of the same or different inventive peptides, and to conjugates which comprise the inventive peptides and/or polymers. Additionally, the invention relates to mixtures which comprise the inventive peptides and/or polymers and which are used in the method in order to detect anti-HHV8 antibodies in a very sensitive and specific manner. The invention provides a diagnostic kit which comprises the inventive peptides, polymers and/or mixtures and which can be used to detect anti-HHV8 antibodies or to diagnose an HHV8 infection. -