Jean Joseph Henri Toussaint

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Jean Joseph Henri Toussaint (April 30, 1847 - August 3, 1890) was a French veterinary physician who was born in the department of Vosges. In 1869 he received his diploma from the school of veterinary medicine in Lyon. In 1876, he was appointed professor of anatomy, physiology and zoology at the school of veterinary medicine in Toulouse.

Toussaint is remembered for his contributions in bacteriology. He is credited for the discovery of the bacillus that causes cholera in chickens. He also performed important studies concerning septicemia and tuberculosis. His most important contribution was the creation of a vaccine against anthrax. However, the credit for this discovery went to Louis Pasteur, after his celebrated demonstration with the vaccine at Pouilly-le-Fort in 1881. Pasteur never gave proper credit to Toussaint and his discovery. Famed German bacteriologist Robert Koch was aware of Toussaint's work with the vaccine, as was Pasteur's nephew, bacteriologist Adrien Loir. Loir documented this information in his 1938 book A l'ombre de Pasteur (In the Shade of Pasteur).