Jean Joseph Henri Toussaint (30 April 1847 – 3 August 1890) was a French

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

born in Rouvres-la-Chétive, department of

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a singl ...

. In 1869 he received his diploma from the school of veterinary medicine in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

. In 1876 he was appointed professor of

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having i ...

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemic ...

and

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, an ...

at the veterinary school of Toulouse. Toussaint is remembered for contributions made in the field of

bacteriology Bacteriology is the branch and specialty of biology that studies the morphology, ecology, genetics and biochemistry of bacteria as well as many other aspects related to them. This subdivision of microbiology involves the identification, classificat ...

. From his research, he conducted important investigations of chicken cholera,

sepsis Sepsis, formerly known as septicemia (septicaemia in British English) or blood poisoning, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage is follo ...

, and

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

. Probably, his most significant contribution was the development of a method of vaccination against

anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The s ...

. However, credit for creation of the anthrax vaccine went to

Louis Pasteur Louis Pasteur (, ; 27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895) was a French chemist and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial fermentation and pasteurization, the latter of which was named afte ...

, following Pasteur's celebrated demonstration with the vaccine on sheep at Pouilly-le-Fort from the May 5th to May 31st 1881. At Pouilly-le-Fort, Pasteur used a vaccine attenuated by

potassium dichromate Potassium dichromate, , is a common inorganic chemical reagent, most commonly used as an oxidizing agent in various laboratory and industrial applications. As with all hexavalent chromium compounds, it is acutely and chronically harmful to health ...

, employing a process similar to Toussaint's, who had published a means of attenuation by another

antiseptic An antiseptic (from Greek ἀντί ''anti'', "against" and σηπτικός ''sēptikos'', "putrefactive") is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putre ...

carbolic acid Phenol (also called carbolic acid) is an aromaticity, aromatic organic compound with the molecular chemical formula, formula . It is a white crystalline solid that is volatility (chemistry), volatile. The molecule consists of a phenyl group () ...

. Pasteur never gave proper credit to Toussaint and his discovery. Pasteur's nephew, bacteriologist

Adrien Loir Adrien Loir (15 December 1862 – 1941) was a French bacteriologist born in Lyon. He was a nephew of Louis Pasteur, and for much of his career was associated with the Pasteur Institute. From 1882 to 1888 Loir was an assistant in Pasteur's la ...

(1862-1941) was aware of Toussaint's work with the

vaccine A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.

, of which he documented in the 1938 treatise, ''A l'ombre de Pasteur'' ("In the Shadow of Pasteur"). From 1881, Toussaint was in declining health, reportedly from a nerve-related disease. He died on 3 August 1890 at the age of 43.

References

On the Anthrax Inoculation
by Robert Koch * ''Parts of this article are based on a translation of the equivalent article from the

French Wikipedia The French Wikipedia (french: Wikipédia en français) is the French-language edition of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. This edition was started on 23 March 2001, two months after the official creation of Wikipedia. It has articl ...

.'' French parasitologists 1847 births 1890 deaths French veterinarians Vaccinologists People from Vosges (department) {{France-med-bio-stub