Detection and identification of Leishmania parasites within sand flies using kDNA, rDNA and CPB loci

Authors
Mojtaba Saadati 1
Shahram Nazarian 2
Babak Barati 2
Hossein Mehdizadeh 2
Majid Sadeghizadeh 3
Hadi Shirzad Shirzad 4
Majid Sadeghizadeh 3
Abbas Mosapour 5
1 Associated Professor, Department of Biology, Imam Houssein University, Tehran, Iran
2 M.Sc., Department of Biology, Imam Houssein University, Tehran, Iran
3 Associated Professor, Department of Genetics, Faculty of Basic Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
4 Ph.D. Student, Department of Biology, Imam Houssein University, Tehran, Iran
5 Ph.D. Student, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, School of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Objective: Molecular epidemiology of Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) is currently used widely for different objectives such as vector incrimination studies.
Materials and Methods: In this study three different loci including kinetoplast DNA (kDNA), ribosomal DNA (rDNA), and Cystein protease B (CPB) of Leishmania parasite genome were used for detection and identification of natural infection of sand flies of Germi district of Ardebil province, the most important VL or Kala-azar foci in Iran.
Results: The results showed that the three loci of kDNA, rDNA and CPBs are respectively more appropriate for leptomonad infection/initial screening, identification of the L.donovani complex, and discrimination of the species complex. It was also verified that both members of the complex,
L. donovani and L. infantum, are present in the study area and are transmitted to the hosts by

Keywords