Leishmaniasis: epigenetic mechanisms implicated in infection

Leishmaniasis is a human and animal disease caused by parasites of the Leishmania genus that affects 12 million people worldwide. It is endemic in around a hundred countries and is currently emerging in Europe as a result of climate change and large-scale population movements. Scientists from the Institut Pasteur in Paris, in collaboration with the Institut Pasteur of Shanghai-Chinese Academy of Sciences, have elucidated a new resistance mechanism of the infectious agents of leishmaniasis against host antimicrobial activities. The discovery paves the way for the development of new therapies to eliminate the harmful influence of the parasite.

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