Personalized Site-Specific Immunomodulation

Abstract

The invention provides methods of treating inflammation in a specific organ or tissue of an individual. The method involves determining whether the individual has previously been infected with at least one pathogen that is pathogenic in the specific organ or tissue; and administering to the individual an anti-inflammatory composition comprising antigenic determinants, the antigenic determinants selected or formulated so that together they are specific for the at least one pathogen. The pathogen may be an endogenous or exogenous pathogen, and may further be a bacterial pathogen, a viral pathogen, a fungal pathogen, a protozoan pathogen, or a helminth pathogen.

1 - 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A method for treating a human patient having an inflammatory bowel disease, the method comprising:
 administering to a human patient, diagnosed as having inflammatory bowel disease and exhibiting symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease, by injection, an amount of an antigenic formulation comprising whole  Escherichia coli  ( E. coli ) cells in successive doses given at a dosage interval, over a dosage duration, wherein the amount of the antigenic formulation and duration of the administering is therapeutically effective to reduce or eliminate the symptoms of the inflammatory bowel disease in the human patient, wherein the whole killed  E. coli  cells are cells of an  E. coli  strain that is pathogenic.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the dosage duration is at least two weeks. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered so that each dose is effective to cause a visible localized inflammatory immune response at an administration site. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered so that the visible localized inflammation at the administration site occurs within 1 to 48 hours. 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the whole killed  E. coli  cells are cells of an  E. coli  strain collected from a patient with an  E. coli  colonic infection. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered subcutaneously every day, or every other day. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the whole killed  E. coli  cells are cells of an  E. coli  strain collected from a patient with an  E. coli  colonic infection. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the dosage duration is at least two weeks. 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered so that each dose is effective to cause a visible localized inflammatory immune response at an administration site. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered subcutaneously every day, or every other day. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered so that each dose is effective to cause a visible localized inflammatory immune response at an administration site. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered so that the visible localized inflammation at the administration site occurs within 1 to 48 hours. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the antigenic formulation is administered subcutaneously every day, or every other day. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the  E. coli  cells are cells of an  E. coli  strain collected from a patient with an  E. coli  infection. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the  E. coli  cells are cells of an  E. coli  selected from the group consisting of enterotoxigenic  E. coli  (ETEC), enteropathogenic  E. coli  (EPEC), enterohemorrhagic  E. coli  (EHEC), Shiga toxin-producing  E. coli  (STEC), enteroaggregative  E. coli  (EAEC), enteroinvasive  E. coli  (EIEC), and diffuse adhering  E. coli  (DAEC).