Epidemiological analysis of Leishmania tropica strains and giemsa-stained smears from Syrian and Turkish leishmaniasis patients using multilocus microsatellite typing (MLMT)

Mehmet Karakuş*, Abed Nasereddin, Hüseyin Onay, Emin Karaca, Ahmet Özkeklikçi, Charles L. Jaffe, Katrin Kuhls, Ahmet Özbilgin, Hatice Ertabaklar, Samiye Demir, Yusuf Özbel, Seray Töz

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Scopus citations

Abstract

Turkey is located in an important geographical location, in terms of the epidemiology of vector-borne diseases, linking Asia and Europe. Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is one of the endemic diseases in a Turkey and according to the Ministry Health of Turkey, 45% of CL patients originate from Şanlıurfa province located in southeastern Turkey. Herein, the epidemiological status of CL, caused by L. tropica, in Turkey was examined using multilocus microsatellite typing (MLMT) of strains obtained from Turkish and Syrian patients. A total of 38 cryopreserved strains and 20 Giemsa-stained smears were included in the present study. MLMT was performed using 12 highly specific microsatellite markers. Delta K (ΔK) calculation and Bayesian statistics were used to determine the population structure. Three main populations (POP A, B and C) were identified and further examination revealed the presence of three subpopulations for POP B and C. Combined analysis was performed using the data of previously typed L. tropica strains and Mediterranean and Şanlıurfa populations were identified. This finding suggests that the epidemiological status of L. tropica is more complicated than expected when compared to previous studies. A new population, comprised of Syrian L. tropica samples, was reported for the first time in Turkey, and the data presented here will provide new epidemiological information for further studies.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere0005538
JournalPLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Volume11
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 12 Apr 2017
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Karakuş et al.

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