The invention relates to an improved nucleic acid molecule encoding fungal immunomodulatory protein (FIP) that is better expressed in fungi, to vectors comprising the nucleic acid molecule, to hosts transformed with said vectors, to processes of expressing the protein of the invention in said transformed hosts, to the protein of the invention produced by said processes, to uses of said hosts comprising the protein of the invention and to a process of purifying FIP. The protein of the invention has wide immunomodulatory activity. Thus, the present invention further relates to uses of the protein of the invention in cosmetic or pharmaceutical compositions and to food or feed additives comprising the protein of the invention. Finally, the invention relates to the method of modulating immunological activities by orally administering FIP or proteins fused with FIP to a subject.
