| adjuvant vaccine | A vaccine that contains an adjuvant; most often the antigen (immunogen) is included in a water-in-oil emulsion (Freund incomplete type adjuvant), or is adsorbed onto an inorganic gel (alum, aluminum hydroxide or phosphate). (05 Mar 2000) |
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| adjuvants, immunologic | Substances that augment, stimulate, activate, potentiate, or modulate the immune response at either the cellular or humoral level. The classical agents (freund's adjuvant, bcg, corynebacterium parvum, et al.) contain bacterial antigens. Some are endogenous (e.g., histamine, interferon, transfer factor, tuftsin, interleukin-1). Their mode of action is either non-specific, resulting in increased immune responsiveness to a wide variety of antigens, or antigen-specific, i.e., affecting a restricted type of immune response to a narrow group of antigens. The therapeutic efficacy of many biological response modifiers is related to their antigen-specific immunoadjuvanticity. (12 Dec 1998) |
| adjuvants, pharmaceutic | Agents that aid or increase the action of the principle drug or that affect the absorption, mechanism of action, metabolism, or excretion of the primary drug in such a way as to enhance its effects. (12 Dec 1998) |