Arginase activity of Leishmania isolated from patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis

This study aimed to compare the ARG activity of isolated Leishmania promastigotes from CL patients with a standard strain of L. major and its influences on the disease pathogenesis. We recruited 16 confirmed CL patients from Qom province, in central Iran; after detection of Leishmania species using PCR‐RFLP, we assessed the levels of ARG in the isolated promastigotes and determined the parasites’ growth rate. Only L. major was identified from CL patients. The level of ARG activity in the isolated Leishmania promastigotes from CL patients was significantly higher than that obtained from the standard strain of L. major. No significant correlations between ARG activity and lesion size, number, or duration were observed; in contrast, a significant negative correlation was seen between ARG level and Leishmania’ growth rate. The obtained results suggest that increased ARG expression and activity in the isolated Leishmania promastigotes might contribute to the higher parasite infectivity and play a major role in the pathogenicity of the CL. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Source: Parasite Immunology - Category: Parasitology Authors: Tags: Original Article Source Type: research