RESEARCH Expanding the knowledge

The leishmaniasis is caused by more than 20 different protozoan species of the genus Leishmania and consti-tutes a serious public health problem worldwide [1]. Par-asites are transmitted by phlebotomine sand flies which become infected during blood meal on mammalian hosts. In Brazil, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is present in 21 states, while the cutaneous forms of the disease (CL) were described in all states since 2003 [2]. In the Federal District of Brazil (FD), VL transmission began in 2005 in residential areas near forests. Moreover, domestic dogs infected with Leishmania spp. have been registered throughout the FD [3]. Several species of wild, domestic and synanthropic mammals have been recorded as hosts and/or reservoir