Calomyscid Rodents (Rodentia: Calomyscidae) as a Potential Reservoir of Zoonotic Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in a Mountainous Residential Area in the Plateau of Iran: Inferring from Molecular Data of kDNA and ITS2 Genes of Leishmania Major

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), a neglected tropical disease, is an important health problem in Fars Province, southern Iran. Fars, the fourth most populous Province in Iran, is the center of both anthroponotic and zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL). Rodents, the reservoir of Leishmania major, play an important role in transmitting ZCL. In the present study, we report Leishmania infection in calomyscid rodents for the first time in mountainous residential areas of Shiraz, the capital of Fars Province, in southern Iran. Rodents were trapped in urban mountainous areas. The skin, liver, and spleen of rodents were examined microscopically for Leishmania infection. In addition, DNA was extracted from the tissues and they were evaluated for Leishmania infection by targeting the kDNA and subsequent sequencing of the nuclear rDNA internal transcribed spacer two (ITS2) region. DNA of L. major was detected in the spleen and liver of calomyscid rodents. Molecular evolution based on DNA-sequencing of the ITS2 gene confirmed the taxonomic situation of the parasite as L. major. Our findings suggest the eco-epidemiological importance of calomyscid rodents in the foci of leishmaniasis in the mountainous residential area on the plateau of Iran. These rodents may play a role in the transmission of leishmaniasis in a residential area and could be considered a potential reservoir for CL.