A research coordinated by the UAB has succeeded in testing a
vaccine against leishmaniasis. The vaccine was tested with the
best animal model existing, the golden hamster, and can be
produced at low costs by using insect larvae. The research,
published in the latest edition of PLoS ONE, is an important
step towards the fight against a disease which causes the death
of 70,000 people each year in developing countries and of
countless dogs, which also suffer from this disease and are its
natural reservoir. Leishmaniasis is one of the main health
problems existing at global scale. It is produced by the
protozoan Leishmania infantum, and canines, which can also be
infected with the disease, are the main reservoirs of the
organism. The disease is transmitted by insects from the
Phlebotominae subfamily (sandflies), which are very similar to
mosquitos. Clinical manifestations can go anywhere from minor
skin sores to organ complications and, in the worst cases,
death. The disease causes 70,000 deaths a year, mainly in