Introduction
Leishmaniasis is a severe, widespread zoonotic disease which occurs in the Middle and Far East, the Meditterranean basin, South America, and in some states in the United States of America. Leishmania is primarily a parasite of rodents, carnivores, marsupials, edentates, insectivores, and secondarily of dogs and humans. Severe disease develops in the man and in the dog, which is characterized either by skin lesions or a general visceral involvement. The dog is the reservoir for visceral leishmaniasis in South America and the Meditteranean region. The disease is transmitted by the blood sucking sandfly (genus Phlebotomus in the Old World and genus Lutzomya in the New World). The disease is caused by several species of protozoa in the genus Leishmania. Visceral forms of leishmania are caused by L.donovani and L.infantum/L.chagasi in the Old World and L.infantum/L.chagasi in the New World.
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