Abstract
BackgroundCutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a vector-borne disease transmitted by the bite of an infected sand fly. This disease is highly prevalent in Saudi Arabia where Leishmania major and L. tropica are the etiological agents. In the region of Hail, northwestern of Saudi Arabia, the incidence is about 183 cases/year. However, the epidemiology of the disease in this area is not well understood. Thus, an epidemiological survey was conducted in 2015–2016 to identify the circulating parasite and the sand fly fauna in the region of Hail. Skin lesion scrapings were collected from suspected patients with CL.MethodsThe diagnosis was made by microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained smear and PCR. The parasite was identified by PCR and sequencing of the single copy putative translation initiation factor alpha subunit gene. Sand fly specimens were collected and identified morphologically. Total DNA was extracted from the abdomen of female specimens and Leishmania DNA was detected by PCR.ResultsAmong the 57 examined patients, 37 were positive for CL. The identification of the parasite has revealed the single species Leishmania major. The 384 sand flies were collected belonged to two genera (Phlebotomus and Sergentomyia), six sub-genera and six species. Phlebotomus papatasi, Ph. kazeruni and Sergentomyia clydei were the dominant species. Leishmania DNA was detected in two females of Ph. papatasi two of Ph. kazeruni and one specimen of Sergentomyia clydei.ConclusionsLeishmania major is confirmed to be the etiological agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis in northwestern Saudi Arabia. The molecular detection of Leishmania DNA in Ph. papatasi and Ph. kazeruni supports the potential role of these two species in the transmission of Leishmania. Further epidemiological studies are needed to prove their role and to evaluate the burden of CL in the study region.
Highlights
Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a vector-borne disease transmitted by the bite of an infected sand fly
Cutaneous leishmaniasis due to L. tropica is less prevalent compared to zoonotic CL caused by L. major
We aimed to identify both the Leishmania species and the sand fly species composition in the Hail region in northwestern Saudi Arabia including the monthly abundance of circulating phlebotomine species
Summary
Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a vector-borne disease transmitted by the bite of an infected sand fly This disease is highly prevalent in Saudi Arabia where Leishmania major and L. tropica are the etiological agents. It is known to be the ninth largest disease burden among the 13 parasitic and bacterial neglected tropical diseases worldwide [1, 2] It is selfhealing, CL causes skin ulcers and disfiguring scars that. Cutaneous leishmaniasis due to L. tropica is less prevalent compared to zoonotic CL caused by L. major It occurs within small endemic foci in the west (Al Madina Al-Munawarah and Al Qassim) and southwest (high plateau of Aseer) provinces [9, 10, 12,13,14,15]
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