Carbohydrate mimetic peptides of tumor associated carbohydrate antigens (TACA) 
are T-cell-dependent antigens and, therefore, immunization with these surrogates 
is predicted to overcome the low immunogenicity of carbohydrate antigens. 
Consistent with this hypothesis, we show that among the potential immune cells 
involved, peptide immunization led to an increase in T-cell populations. While 
peptide mimetics may also function as TLR binding ligands, we did not observe 
evidence of involvement of NK cells. Examining tumor challenged animals, we 
observed that peptide immunization and not tumor cells rendered IL-12 
responsiveness to T-cells, as T-cells from peptide-immunized mice produced 
IFN-gamma upon stimulation with IL-12. Cyclophosphamide administration enhanced 
the anti-tumor efficacy of the vaccine, which was achieved by enhancing T-cell 
responses with no effect on NK cell population. Prophylactic immunization of 
mice with a DNA construct encoding carbohydrate mimetic peptides indicated a 
specific role for the mimotope vaccine in anti-tumor immune responses. These 
data suggest a role for both CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cells induced by mimotopes of 
TACA in protective immunity against tumor cells.