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 needle slant culture to needle, the open end of the culture will be treated with flame and the cap will be replaced. An inoculation needle is used in the transfer of microbial organisms from plate culture to needle by first sterilizing the needle to prevent contaminants. The lid of the agar plate culture is then removed to allow the needle access to the microorganisms cultured on the agar plate. The lid is held hovering above the culture plate to prevent contamination from the surrounding environment. The inoculation needle after incineration is cooled down on an uninoculated region of the agar plate