The effect of BCG on experimental cutaneous leishmaniasis in mice.

The effect of administration of live Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), a nonspecific immunostimulant, on the course of experimental cutaneous leishmaniasis in mice was investigated. BALB/c mice were injected in the footpad with Leishmania tropica, NIH S-strain; in mice that were not pretreated with BCG this produced a reproducible fatal infection characterized by local inflammation, regional lymphadenopathy, and dissemination of parasites with hepatosplenomegaly. In mice that were pretreated with BCG and similarly infected with L. tropica there was a reduction in the severity of cutaneous disease and a significant (p less than 0.005) decrease in mortality without evidence of visceralization.