Abstract
Summary
The protective values against experimental tuberculosis in mice of Youmans′ cytoplasmic particulate fraction and of oil disruption product, both prepared from the same lots of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, strains BCG and H37Ra, were tested in parallel with viable BCG vaccine. Two tests were employed, one based on intravenous challenge with large doses and the other on pulmonary challenge with a few virulent tubercle bacilli (H37Rv). Results are presented demonstrating that the vaccine efficacy of the oil disruption product approached or equalled that of similar doses of viable BCG by all criteria used to estimate the response, while its ability to sensitize guinea pigs to P.PD was considerably less than that of viable BCG. The cytoplasmic particulate fraction prepared according to the method of Youmans et at, while effective at high dose levels in the massive challenge test, was not effective in the aerosol challenge test. In contrast to the particulate fraction, sterilization by heat did not impair the protective potency of oil disruption product.
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