Inoculation << ih `nok` yuh LAY shuhn >> is the injection of a special preparation into the body in order to produce immunity. The preparation stimulates the body’s immune system against a particular disease-causing agent. It may be made from specially treated toxins (poisons), or from disease-producing bacteria or viruses. The term inoculation is also commonly used for the injection of other materials, such as serum or gamma globulin, into the body. Inoculation has been used since ancient times in China, India, and other places. In 1796, Edward Jenner, an English physician, developed a method of inoculating people with cowpox to protect them from smallpox. Inoculations to the surface of the skin are called cutaneous inoculations; those under the skin, subcutaneous; those into muscle tissue, intramuscular; and those into a vein, intravenous.
