Leishmania
Synonyms
Leishmania (Leishmania)
Leishmania (Viannia)
Leishmania leishmania
Leishmania leishmanias
Leishmania viannia
Leishmania viannias
Leishmanias
Leishmanias (Leishmania)
Leishmanias (Viannia)
leishmanias, Leishmania
viannias, Leishmania
A genus of flagellate protozoa comprising several species that are pathogenic for humans. Organisms of this genus have an amastigote and a promastigote stage in their life cycles. As a result of enzymatic studies this single genus has been divided into two subgenera: Leishmania leishmania and Leishmania viannia. Species within the Leishmania leishmania subgenus include: L. aethiopica, L. arabica, L. donovani, L. enrietti, L. gerbilli, L. hertigi, L. infantum, L. major, L. mexicana, and L. tropica. The following species are those that compose the Leishmania viannia subgenus: L. braziliensis, L. guyanensis, L. lainsoni, L. naiffi, and L. shawi.
See Also