BCG:An effectiveimmunizationagainst tuberculosis.BCGstands forBacille Calmette Guerin. BCG is a weakened (attenuated)versionof a细菌被称为Mycobacteriumbovis which is closely related toMycobacterium tuberculosis, the agent responsible for tuberculosis.
Camille Guerin (1872-1961) and Albert Calmette (1863-1933) produced the BCGstrainof the bacteria at thePasteur InstituteinParis in 1921. Within a decade the BCG vaccine was being given in France and many other countries. By 1928, BCG had been given to 116,000 infants in France alone. However, conflicting questions about its effectiveness delayed the use of the BCG vaccine in the United States until 1950.
BCG is also used as anadjuvantto stimulate theimmune responseand in cancer chemotherapy.
