The present invention is related to recombinant constructs encoding heat shock proteins or active fragments thereof, effective in treating T cell mediated inflammatory autoimmune diseases by DNA vaccines. The treatment with the recombinant constructs of the present invention provides long-term expression of specific heat shock proteins for fragments thereof. In one embodiment, the present invention is related to a recombinant construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding HSP60, HSP70 or HSP90. In various preferred embodiments, the present invention is related to a recombinant construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence selected from amino acids 1-140 of HSP60, amino acids 130-260 of HSP60 and amino acids 31-50 of HSP60. Another aspect of the present invention is related to an active fragment of HSP60 corresponding to amino acids 31-50 of HSP60 effective in treating arthritis.
