BCG vaccine immunity against human tuberculosis. The BCG vaccine can be anywhere from 0 to 80% effective in preventing tuberculosis for a duration of 15 years; however, its protective effect appears to vary according to geography and the lab in which the vaccine strain was grown. A number of different companies make BCG, sometimes using different genetic strains of the bacterium. This may result in different product characteristics. OncoTICE, used for bladder instillation for bladder cancer, was developed by Organon Laboratories (since acquired by Schering-Plough, and in turn acquired by Merck & Co.). Pacis BCG, made from the Montréal (Institut Armand-Frappier) strain,
Inoculation loop Inoculation loop An inoculation loop, also called a smear loop, inoculation wand or microstreaker, is a simple tool used mainly by microbiologists to retrieve an inoculum from a culture of microorganisms. The loop is used in the cultivation of microbes on plates by transferring inoculum for streaking. It can also be used to transfer microscopic organisms. Touching a broth or a culture plate will gather enough microbes for inoculation. The wire forms a small loop with a diameter of about 5 mm. The loop of wire at the tip may be made of platinum, tungsten or nichrome, the latter being