In vitro activity of Arbutus unedo against Leishmania tropica promastigotes.

PubMed ID: 19598085Pentavalent antimonials are the first choice for the treatment of anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) in health centers in Turkey, however in rural areas, traditional plants may be preferred for the treatment of lesions. In recent years a number of papers are published related to the natural products especially plant derivates. Our aim is to investigate the antileishmanial effect of Arbutus unedo which is a wild plant mainly grown in maquis and rocky places of the seabord in South Europe. In the present study, the ethanolic, water and n-hexane extracts from the leaves of Arbutus unedo were originally tested in vitro against Leishmania tropica promastigotes. The ethanol extract of Arbutus unedo leaves at the concentrations of 100, 250, 500 microg/ml were found to be more effective than the other extracts (p:0.000). Our study showed that the ethanolic extract of Arbutus unedo leaves can be a promising antileishmanial agent and further experiments are needed

A discrepancy between cystic echinococcosis confirmed by ultrasound and seropositivity in Turkish children

PubMed ID: 15652335In three randomly selected villages of Manisa, Turkey, 630 primary school children were examined for cystic echinococcosis (CE) by a portable ultrasound scanner (US) and chest microfilm. Sera samples of 483 (76.7%) children were tested for anti-E. granulosus antibodies by ELISA and indirect hemagglutination (IHA) tests. Hepatic CE were detected in two cases (0.3%) by US, while 43 (8.9%) and 49 (10.1%) cases were found to be positive for CE by ELISA and IHA, respectively. The high seropositivity levels could have been attributed to extra-abdominal or abortive Echinococcus infections, but probably most of them were false-positives. Due to the discrepancy in results, US should be selected as the primary test in field studies and serologic tests should be performed in all cases with suspected lesions. We could not find any reported community based study on CE in Turkey, in which US was applied; but our results suggest that extensive epidemiological studies are required. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.This study was financially supported by Mavişehir Rotary Club, İzmir, Turkey. We thank İzmir Tuberculosis Control Unit for providing microfilms, the people who cooperated with us during the study, especially the principle of national education, Manisa, the school principals and teachers. -

[An epidemiological study on canine leishmaniasis (CanL) and sand flies in Northern Cyprus]. [Kuzey Kibris'ta Kanin Leishmaniasis ve Kum Sineklerinin Epidemiyolojisi.]

PubMed ID: 23955908In this study, the investigation on the prevalence of canine leishmaniasis (CanL) and sand fly species incriminated as potential vectors of leishmaniasis in the northern part of the Cyprus were aimed. This research was conducted in two periods; 2004 and 2012. Serological (IFAT and rK39) and molecular (PCR) tests were performed on 83 dog blood samples during the 2004 survey. PCR was performed using primers 13A/13B targeting kinetoplastid minicircle constant region. Genomic Nested-PCR was applied using R221/R332 and R323/333 primers for 5 clinically suspected dog samples in 2012. Sand flies were collected from the Lapithos town and Kyreniae province using CDC light traps and midgut dissection was done for the presence of Leishmania parasites during the 2012 survey. Three (3.61%) out of 83 dogs were found to be positive for CanL in 2004, while 3 out of 5 clinically suspected dogs were positive in 2012. In total 296 female sand flies were dissected and 9 species belonging to Phlebotomus and Sergentomyia genera were determined. No promastigote was found in the dissected females. The results obtained in two different periods showed that the importance and risk of canine disease are increasing in the northern Cyprus and further studies should be performed in northern Cyprus for determining the incidence of canine and human leishmaniasis