Adjuvant properties of hydrophobic derivatives prepared from L-tyrosine

The capacity of various N-acyl, O-acyl, amide and ester derivatives of L-tyrosine to promote the induction of antibodies to grass pollen extracts has been studied in guinea pigs. Antibody production was generally found to be enhanced when these derivatised materials were used as adsorbate vehicles compared with either L-tyrosine or simple aqueous presentations. Increases in alkyl chain length were found to parallel increased adjuvant activity. Unlike L-tyrosine, however, these hydrophobic materials tended to produce tissue lesions in experimental animals at concentrations which displayed apparent adjuvant advantages.