The American leishmaniases some observations on t

Authors: Lainson R

Publish Date: 1983/01/01

Volume: 77, Issue: 5, Pages: 569-596

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Abstract

As the first species of Leishmania encountered were the agents of human visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis it is understandable that studies on these parasites for a long time concentrated on those organisms commonly causing disease in man Epidemiological studies over the past 20 years or so however have led to the inescapable conclusion that the genus Leishmania is comprised of numerous species of well adapted parasites in a wide range of mammals throughout most of those tropical and subtropical regions of the world where phlebotomine sandflies exist Diptera Psychodidae Many of the leishmanias probably never gain entrance into man due either to an incapacity to survive in his tissues or more likely because the natural sandfly vectors do not feed on him The leishmanias that do infect man are nevertheless among the greatest protozoological scourges of mankind and a better understanding of their lifecycles may well help in future prevention or control of the diseases they cause With few exceptions the leishmaniases are zoonoses with a major source of infection in wild or domestic animals In the Americas the disease is essentially a rural one and most commonly acquired by those penetrating forested or wooded regions The following paper deals with the better known human leishmaniases of the New World and some new ones and discusses the major historical events in the laborious task of elucidating their ecology and epidemiology

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