Cloning and Sequencing of Leishmania infantum Iran Strain LACK Gene

Canine visceral leishmaniasis is a zoonosis protozoan disease that is potentially fatal to humans and dogs. In Iran، this disease is common and it is caused by Leishmania infantum Iranian standard strain (MCAN/IR/07/Moheb-gh). Several proteins are used for vaccination، one of them is LACK (Leishmania homologue for receptors for activated C kinase)، a 36 KD protein. Because of the wide spread of canine visceral leishmaniasis in Iran، in this study molecular cloning of the LACK protective antigen of Leishmania infantum Iran strain was considered to produce an effective recombinant protein. Therefore، Genomic DNA of Leishmania infantum was extracted and used as a template for PCR test، Then، PCR product of the LACK was cloned into pTZ57R/T vector. Recombinant plasmid was extracted and analyzed by sequencing، restriction enzyme digestion and PCR test. The results showed that LACK gene was correctly cloned into pTZ57R/T vector and as expected it was 939bp. This study was the first step for designing a DNA vaccine based on LACK Leishmania infantum Iran stain for expression recombinant protein for subsequent studies.