BCG reagents typically refer to Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) reagents, which are biological products derived from attenuated strains of Mycobacterium bovis, a bacterium closely related to the one causing tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis).
BCG reagents play a significant role in tuberculosis control programs, medical research, and clinical practice, contributing to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of tuberculosis and other diseases.
The most well-known use of BCG is as a vaccine against tuberculosis (TB). BCG vaccine contains live attenuated strains of Mycobacterium bovis and is administered to infants in many countries where TB is prevalent to provide immunity against tuberculosis.
BCG is also used in medical research for various purposes, including studying the immune response to mycobacterial infections, developing new TB vaccines, and investigating its potential in treating other diseases, such as bladder cancer and autoimmune diseases.
BCG reagents are also used in diagnostic tests for tuberculosis, such as the tuberculin skin test (Mantoux test) and interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs). These tests help diagnose TB infection by measuring the immune response to TB antigens.