The present invention relates to foreign peptide sequences fused to
recombinant plant viral structural proteins and a method of their
production. Fusion proteins are economically synthesized in plants at
high levels by biologically contained tobamoviruses. The fusion proteins
of the invention have are useful as antigens for inducing the production
of antibodies having desired binding properties, e.g., protective
antibodies, or for use as vaccine antigens for the induction of
protective immunity against the parvovirus. Feline parvovirus epitopes
were fused to the N-terminus of the TMV coat protein, expressed in
Nicotiana plants, extracted, purified, characterized and administered to
animals, resulting in protective immunity.