The PCR-based detection ofLeishmania majorinMus musculusand other rodents caught in southern Iran: a guide to sample selection

Abstract

In recent years, rural cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) has become one of the most challenging public-health problems in several countries. Rodents play an important role as the 'reservoir' hosts of the parasite (Leishmania major) that causes the vast majority of the CL found in rural Iran. The present study deals with the role of rodents in the epidemiology of CL in Fars province, in the south of Iran, where the incidence of the disease has doubled over the last decade. Samples, of skin, foot pads, ears, livers and spleens, were collected from 89 rodents (three Meriones persicus, one Me. libycus, 64 Tatera indica and 21 Mus musculus), that had been caught in an endemic area, killed, and fixed in formalin [5% (w/v) formaldehyde]. When each sample was checked for L. major DNA by PCR, at least one sample from each of three (100%) of the Me. persicus, 35 (54.7%) of the T. indica and nine (42.9%) of the Mu. musculus was found to contain L. major DNA. Only 60% of the ear samples, 56% of the footpad samples, 38% of the liver samples and 38% of the spleen samples from the PCR-positive rodents were, however, found PCR-positive. Four of the rodents (two T. indica and two Mu. musculus) were each found to have PCR-positive ear and footpad samples but PCR-negative liver and spleen samples. Only four of the rodents (all Reprint requests to: M. H. Motazedian.

Natural infection of synathropic rodent species Mus musculus and Rattus norvegicus by Leishmania infantum in Sesimbra and Sintra – Portugal

“…In this study, in spite of systemic dissemination being present on 6 rodent’s livers (on parasitological analysis) and 8 rodent´s spleens (3 on parasitological analysis and 5 on histopathological analysis), no positive results were obtained by qPCR on spleen samples. Similar PCR results were also described by other authors working with specimens of Mus musculus infected with Leishmania major [23]. …”

“…This result is higher than the ones obtained in Brazil with 13.7% (3/22) [10] and Iran with 19% (4/21) [23]. This occurrence may have an important epidemiological role on the transmission of the parasite.…”

“…The infection rate obtained by qPCR on Mus musculus rodents (33.3%) strongly suggests the occurrence of contact with infected sandflies, especially considering the preferential nightfall activity period overlap. Also, the absence of skin lesions strongly suggests a non-pathogenic infection course, as already described in Brazil [10,11] and in Iran [22,23]. …”

Molecular identification of Leishmania isolates obtained from patients suspected as having cutaneous leishmaniasis referred to reference laboratories from Yazd province in central Iran

“…The sensitivity of these methods is variable from 27 to 85% for the diagnosis of leishmaniasis. [1718192021] The present study could confirm this range (74.04%). This low sensitivity of these methods depends on clinical presentation with a high dependence on the number of parasites in samples and requires technical skills for sampling, parasite species, technical expertise, and other factors, and it is the main disadvantage of these methods.…”

The changing profile of cutaneous leishmaniasis agent in a central province of Iran

“…DNA-based molecular techniques have improved the identification of Leishmania parasites at the species level (Weirather et al, 2011;Galaï et al, 2011;Parhizkari et al, 2011;Ghasemian et al, 2011;Veland et al, 2012). The differential diagnosis of species and also suitable therapeutic strategies for the disease can be determined through precise protocols for identification of isolates from endemic areas where more than one Leishmania species may be present.…”