Application of microsatellite genotyping to the study of a restricted Leishmania infantum focus: different genotype compositions in isolates from dogs and sand flies

Leishmania infantum polymorphism was studied by DNA microsatellite analysis of 110 L. infantum stocks (94 from dogs, 15 from sand flies, and 1 from a human visceral case) from a rural leishmaniasis-endemic area (Priorat) in northeastern Spain. Three microsatellites of the eight present in three fragments (internal transcribed spacer, Lm4, and Lm2) of L. infantum nuclear DNA are polymorphic inside the focus, resulting in 17 genotypes. Isolates from dogs and sand flies had different allelic compositions and shared only four genotypes. Microsatellite analysis is useful for L. infantum genotyping and epidemiologic tracking. Its application with strains from dogs and vectors in an area endemic for leishmaniasis shows the heterogeneous distribution of L. infantum in hosts living in sympatric conditions

Cutaneous manifestations of human toxocariasis.

International audienceHuman toxocariasis is a parasitic disease characterized by the presence of larvae of the genus Toxocara in human tissues. T canis and T cati, the adult roundworms of which are found in dog and cat intestines, respectively, are the most common causative agents of the disease. Toxocaral larvae usually cause two severe syndromes: visceral larva migrans and ocular larva migrans, depending on the location of the larvae. Two other syndromes, covert toxocariasis and common toxocariasis, which are less typical and not as severe, have also been described. During the last two decades, cutaneous manifestations such as chronic urticaria, chronic pruritus, and miscellaneous eczema, in patients with Toxocara antibodies, have been studied by different authors. In some cases, these cutaneous manifestations are the only signs indicating the presence of the disease, and they are cured after antihelmintic treatment when there is good patient compliance. In this review, we focus on these particular skin manifestations regarding their clinical description, diagnosis, and treatment

Application of microsatellite genotyping to the study of a restricted Leishmania infantum focus: different genotype compositions in isolates from dogs and sand flies

Leishmania infantum polymorphism was studied by DNA microsatellite analysis of 110 L. infantum stocks (94 from dogs, 15 from sand flies, and 1 from a human visceral case) from a rural leishmaniasis-endemic area (Priorat) in northeastern Spain. Three microsatellites of the eight present in three fragments (internal transcribed spacer, Lm4, and Lm2) of L. infantum nuclear DNA are polymorphic inside the focus, resulting in 17 genotypes. Isolates from dogs and sand flies had different allelic compositions and shared only four genotypes. Microsatellite analysis is useful for L. infantum genotyping and epidemiologic tracking. Its application with strains from dogs and vectors in an area endemic for leishmaniasis shows the heterogeneous distribution of L. infantum in hosts living in sympatric conditions