Evaluating a Vaccine for Leishmaniasis

Leishmania is a blood-borne parasite that infects and kills millions of dogs and more than 20,000 people annually. The disease is mostly found in parts of the tropics, subtropics and southern Europe, but there is a surprisingly large prevalence of visceral leishmaniasis among hunting hounds in the United States and Canada. While there are no effective treatments for leishmaniasis, a vaccine (LeishTec®) is currently available in Brazil as a preventive against the disease. Researchers will evaluate the ability of this vaccine to prevent leishmania infection and/ or illness in dogs. This trial also will provide the first evaluation of any leishmania vaccine for disease prevention after natural leishmania exposure in dogs.