Molecular detection of Leishmania spp. isolated from cutaneous lesions of patients referred to Herat regional hospital, Afghanistan.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is one of the main public health problems in Afghanistan, particularly in Herat. To identify Leishmania spp., molecular techniques were applied to samples from 64 cutaneous leishmaniasis patients referred to Herat regional hospital during 2013. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of the ribosomal RNA gene internal transcribed spacer-1 (ITS1) was used. Most of the patients demonstrated dry type single lesions on the head. The results of direct microscopy detection using Giemsastained skin scrapings were compared with that of ITS PCR-RFLP for the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Light microscopy examination showed 37/64 positive cases (58%). PCR revealed 50 positive cases (78%), from which ITS PCR-RFLP identified 48 cases (96%) as L. tropica and 2 cases (4%) as L. major. Cutaneous leishmaniasis in Herat appears to be endemic and of the clinically dry type, caused mainly by L. tropica and occasionally by L. major.