(a) administering to a patient chronically infected with hepatitis B virus a T cell-stimulating amount of a composition comprising immunogenic particles dispersed in a squalene oil-in-water emulsion that includes an adjuvant comprised of a 2-[(R)-3-tetradecanoyloxytetra-decanoylamino]-ethyl-2-deoxy-4-O-phosphono-3-O-[(R)-3-tetradecanoyloxytetra-decanoyl]-2-[(R)-3-tetra-decanoyloxytetradecanoyl-amino]-p-D-glucopyranoside triethylammonium salt, said immunogenic particles comprising recombinant hepatitis B core (HBc) chimeric protein molecules, said chimeric protein molecules being up to about 550 amino acid residues in length and containing

(i) an HBc sequence of at least about 125 of the N-terminal 165 amino acid residues of the HBc molecule that includes the HBc sequence of residue positions 4 through about 75 and about 85 through about 140, and includes an insert in the HBc immunodominant loop, said insert having a length of one to about 40 amino acid residues containing one or more chemically non-reactive heterologous amino acid residues that render the immunogenic particles less antigenic than the native HBc particles,

(ii) one or both of (a′) one to three cysteine residues at an amino acid position of the chimer molecule corresponding to amino acid position −20 to about +1 from the N-terminus of the HBc sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 [N-terminal cysteine residue(s)] in a sequence other than that of the HBc precore sequence and (b′) one to about three cysteine residues toward the C-terminus of the molecule from the C-terminal residue of the HBc sequence and within about 30 residues from the C-terminus of the chimer molecule [C-terminal cysteine residue(s)],

said chimer molecule (a′) containing no more than about 5 percent conservatively substituted amino acid residues in the HBc sequence relative to one of SEQ ID NO:1-6 from position 2 through 165, (b′) having one or both HBc cysteine residues at positions 48 and 107 replaced by another residue, while the HBc cysteine at residue at position 61 is present, and (c′) self-assembling into particles that upon expression in a host cell are substantially free of binding to nucleic acids, and

said particles being more stable than are particles formed from otherwise identical HBc chimer molecules that are free of any above-mentioned C-terminal cysteine residue(s) or N-terminal cysteine residue(s) or in which a C-terminal or an N-terminal cysteine residue(s) present in a contemplated chimer molecule is(are) replaced by another residue; and

(b) maintaining said patient for a time sufficient to induce T cells activated against HBc.