430 FAMILY: TRYPANOSOMID^ 



As noted above (p. 399), Noguchi finds that the cultural forms of 

 L. tropica can be distinguished from other species of Leishmania by 

 serological tests. 



NATURAL INFECTION OF ANIMALS.— Before the discovery of L. tropica 

 in oriental sore, several observers had already noted that in localities 

 in which the human disease occurred dogs were liable to develop similar 

 ulcers, especially on the nose and ears. Neligan (1913), working in 

 Teheran in Persia, where oriental sore is endemic, discovered leishmania 

 in the cutaneous lesions of a dog. Not only were the parasites present 

 in the skin lesions, but they were also found in the spleen, liver, and 

 bone marrow. YakimofE and Schokhor (1914) found leishmania in the 

 cutaneous lesions of dogs in Turkestan, and they suggested the name 

 L. tropica var. canina for this parasite. They produced no evidence, how- 

 ever, that it was different from the human parasite, which occurred in the 

 same locality. Gachet (1915) examined twenty-one dogs in Teheran, and 

 found skin lesions due to leishmania infection in fifteen of them. Dschun- 

 kowsky and Luhs (19096), in Transcaucasia, discovered a dog with leish- 

 mania in the spleen, liver, and bone marrow. Avari and Mackie (1924) 

 have discovered leishmania in ulcers on the ears of a dog in Bombay, 

 and mention another similar infection of a dog in the Punjab which was 

 brought to their notice by Eow, who (1925) has described the case. 



Thus, in Teheran and farther west in Transcaucasia, leishmania are 

 found in dogs, not only in skin lesions, but also in the organs. The question 

 arises as to whether here the two diseases, canine kala azar and canine 

 oriental sore, exist side by side, or whether L. tropica in dogs leads to a 

 general as well as a cutaneous infection. In the Mediterranean region, 

 the naturally occurring canine kala azar is not associated with skin lesions, 

 though a case of spontaneous cutaneous leishmaniasis of the dog has been 

 noted by Sergent, Gueidon, Bouguet, and Catanei (1924) in Algeria, 

 where canine kala azar occurs. In Transcaucasia, both oriental sore and 

 kala azar exist in human beings, and it is not improbable that both occur 

 in dogs. In Teheran, on the other hand, human kala azar is not known. 

 It must be remembered that experimentally the virus of oriental sore 

 may produce a general infection in inoculated animals, while that of kala 

 azar can produce local skin lesions. The subject of canine leishmaniasis 

 in these areas requires further investigation. 



As regards the South American disease, Pedroso (1913) noted ulcers 

 on the skin of two dogs which were associated with a man infected 

 with L. tropica. In one of the ulcers the author claims to have found 

 leishmania, but there seems to be some doubt as to the accuracy of this 

 observation. 



