耻垢分枝杆菌属革兰阳性腐生菌，具有快速生长，无致病性，与结核分枝杆菌基因高度同源、细胞结构相似等特点，较多应用于分枝杆菌感染及相关免疫学研究，是一种相对理想的实验模型。同时，其在非分枝杆菌感染及其他相关免疫研究中也有拓展性的应用。本文就耻垢分枝杆菌在感染与免疫研究中的应用现状进行综述。

Mycobacterium smegmatis (M. smegmatis) is a Gram­positive saprophytic bacterium, with the characteristics of fast­growing, non­pathogenicity as well as the highly homologous genes and similar cellular structure with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). M. smegmatis is an ideal model for mycobacterial infection and other related immune and infectious diseases. The applications of M. smegmatis in anti­tuberculosis infection, immunoregulation and control of non­tuberculosis infection are reviewed in the present paper.