Whole Genome Sequencing of national BCG vaccine strain in Iran (Mycobacterium tuberculosis variant bovis BCG strain Pasteur 1173P2)

This study follows several goals:1) Assessment of the genetic variations of the vaccine strain produced in Iran in the form of different batches over nine years using whole genome sequencing. 2) Comparison of the whole genome sequence of the vaccine strain used in Iran (Pasteur 1173P2) with one of the reference strain introduced by WHO and the most widely used strain worldwide (Danish 1331) to investigate the genetic differences between them. 3) Investigating the effect of the number of passages and the type of culture medium used as possible variables influencing genetic changes in the vaccine strain.