Where was the smallpox vaccine created?

Answer 1

These days there is no smallpox in this world. But hundered years ago, small pox epidemics were not at all common. People used to be very afraid of coming near someone suffering from small pox since they were afraid of catching the disease. However, there was one group of people who did not have this fear. The people would provide nursing care for the victims of small pox. These people were Milkmaids. One day a famous physician named Edward Jenner realized that the Milkman who earlier suffered from cowpox did not catch small pox during epidemics. Cowpox is a very mild disease. So he thought that if the virus of cow pox is injected into the person, he will not suffer from Small Pox. So he started giving the injections of cow pox to people as a vaccine.

Cow pox is a very mild disease as compared to Small Pox.

You know that any vaccine is prepared by injecting the weakened form of virus of any particular disease into the person. E.g - For the vaccine of Chicken Pox. The virus of Chicken pox is weakened and injeted into the body of person. So, he does not have any chances of getting chicken pox in future because when the weakened form of virus of chicken pox is injected into our body our immune system is able to fight it. So, next time when the Chicken Pox virus enters our body our immune system recognises it and able to fight it. So we not get that particular disease.

Similarly, Edward Jenner started injecting the cow pox virus because it is a very mild disease that can be easily cured. So the person who had suffered from cow pox did not get small pox.

Answer 2

The smallpox vaccine was the first successful vaccine to be developed.

Edward Jenner observed that milkmaids who caught the cowpox virus did not catch smallpox.

He started testing by infecting people with actual Cowpox and after successfully finding this to be effective, "mass infecting" people with Cowpox took place.

This reduced mortality by Smallpox drastically.

Cowpox and Smallpox are closely related but Cowpox only gives the disease in a very mild form in humans. This most likely because it has developed towards cows and not humans.

Diseases do not cross the species barrier easily.

As a result of the similarities between the two, human bodies start building up an immune respons against both diseases even if only Cowpox is present.

Read more at related link below.

Answer 3

During the 18th century, it was noticed that milkmaids rarely became infected by smallpox. The majority of milkmaids did, however, get a disease called "cow pox" once in their life (and never again).

Edward Jenner (17 May 1749 - 26 January 1823, Berkely, Gloucestershire, England) experimented and found that by infecting a person with cow pox, they could be immunised against smallpox.

This immunisation is caused by the cow pox initiating the production of antibodies by the immune system, which are effective against both cow pox and the genetically related smallpox.

Answer 4

Live vaccinia virus.

Answer 5

Louis Pasteur