Tuberculin

Tuberculin is an extract of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, M. bovis, or M. avium that is used in skin testing in animals and humans to identify a tuberculosis infection. Several types of tuberculin have been used for this, of which purified protein derivative (PPD) is the most important. PPD is a poorly defined, complex mixture of antigens. Tests based upon PPD are relatively unspecific since many of its proteins are found in different mycobacterial species.