ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses research on the development of effective and safe vaccine against leishmaniasis. It reviews briefly the present understanding of the immunogenetics of the disease. Leishmaniasis is caused by the intracellular protozoan parasites belonging to the genus Leishmania. The last epidemic of leishmaniasis that occurred in India in 1977 and 1978 caused an estimated 20,000 deaths. Most cutaneous leishmaniasis produce a skin ulcer which heals spontaneously leaving an unsightly scar. Vaccination remains perhaps the best answer to the control of leishmaniasis. There is a clear relationship between leishmanization and the recrudescence of latent psoriasis or the appearance of new cases. Clinical experimental evidence unequivocally shows that T cells rather than antibody play a causal role in the acquired immunity against leishmaniasis. The immunological features of mice protected by repeated intravenously injection of killed promastigotes are strikingly different from those characteristic of convalescent immunity.
