title: Genetic diversity of Leishmania tropica strains isolated from clinical forms of cutaneous leishmaniasis in rural districts of Herat province, Western Afghanistan, based on ITS1-rDNA.
abstract: Despite the high incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Afghanistan, there is a little information concerning epidemiological status of the disease and phylogenetic relationship and population structure of causative agents. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and distribution of CL cases and investigate the Leishmania tropica population structure in rural districts of Heart province in the West of Afghanistan in comparison to neighboring foci. Overall, 4189 clinically suspected CL cases from 177 villages (including 12 districts) in Herat province were enrolled in the referral laboratory of WHO sub-office in Herat city from January 2012 to December 2013. 3861 cases were confirmed as CL by microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained slides. ITS1 PCR-RFLP analysis showed dominance of L. tropica (more than 98%) among 127 randomly chosen samples. Analysis of the ITS1 sequences revealed 4 sequence types among the 21 L. tropica isolates. Comparison of sequence types from Herat rural districts with the representatives of L. tropica from Iran, India, and Herat city showed two main population groups (cluster A and B). All isolates from Herat province, India and Southeast, East, and Central Iran were found exclusively in cluster A. The close proximity of West Afghanistan focus and Birjand county as the capital of Southern Khorasan province in East Iran can explain relatively equal to the genetic composition of L. tropica in these two neighboring regions. In addition, two populations were found among L. tropica isolates from Herat rural districts. Main population showed more similarity to some isolates from Birjand county in East Iran while minor population probably originated from the Southeast and East Iranian L. tropica. Recent study provided valuable information concerning the population structure of L. tropica and epidemiology of ACL in the West of Afghanistan, which could be the basis for molecular epidemiology studies in other regions of Afghanistan.
authors.affiliation: Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fakhar
authors.affiliation: Student Research Committee, Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pazoki Ghohe
authors.affiliation: National Health Coordinator (NHC) and Head of Herat WHO Sub-office, Herat Province, Afghanistan.
authors.forename: Sayed Abobakar
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Rasooli
authors.affiliation: Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Department of Microbiology, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran. Electronic address: karamianm@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Mehdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karamian
authors.affiliation: Provincial Quality Assurance Officer, Herat, Province, Afghanistan.
authors.forename: Abdul Satar
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Mohib
authors.affiliation: Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
authors.forename: Hajar
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ziaei Hezarjaribi
authors.affiliation: Student Research Committee, Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
authors.forename: Abdol Sattar
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Pagheh
authors.affiliation: Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Yasuj University of Medical Sciences, Yasuj, Iran; Parasitology Department, School of Medicine, Yasuj University of Medical Sciences, Yasuj, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Amin
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ghatee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000346:Afghanistan / Q000453:epidemiology; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics*; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007895:Leishmania tropica / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016773:Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology / Q000635:transmission; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D012424:Rural Population; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D016054:DNA, Protozoan; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer
keywords: Herat province; ITS1; Leishmania tropica; Phylogenetic relationship; Sequence type