“…PCR-based tools have become essential in studying Leptospira biology, phylogeny, and pathogenesis, and are key to diagnosing active infection. Several genes have been used singly or in tandem to type Leptospira (flaB, gyrB, rpoB, 16SrRNA rrs, secY, lipL32) [29]. In particular, the rpoB gene is an ideal target for phylogenetic analyses: it allows for discrimination among Leptospira species better than most other gene sequences (e.g., rrs, lipL32), and all recognized Leptospira species to date have partial or whole Leptospira rpoB sequence entries in GenBank due to its use in many studies [30,31].…”