Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Parasitology 1735-7020 8 3 2013 09 15 382 388 EN Farnaz Kheirandish Razi Herbal Medicines Research Center, Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran. Ali Chegeni Sharafi Department of Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Deputy of Health, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran. Bahram Kazemi Cellular and Molecular Biology Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University, M.C., Tehran, Iran AND Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Department of Biotechnology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Mehdi Mohebali Department of Parasitology & Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Amanollah Sarlak Razi Herbal Medicines Research Center, Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran. Mohamad Javad Tarahi Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Kourosh Holakouee Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Homa Hajaran Department of Parasitology & Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. 2015 10 14   Background: Leishmaniasis is a group of diseases that are created by intracellular parasites of Leishmania. Cutaneous leishmaniasis is considered as one of the health problems in some provinces of Iran. Methods: In this study, a total of 178 Giemsa-stained slides from confirmed cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis were examined. The slides were prepared from the patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis that referred to health centers and infected during the epidemic of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Poldokhtar city, Lorestan Province, Iran in 2006.Genomic DNA from each slide was extracted. After DNA extraction, ITS-PCR was used. Results: Out of 178 slides, 129 (72.47%) samples had a band in the range of 485 bp and 49 (27.53%) samples 626 bp that matched L. tropica and L. major standard samples, respectively. Conclusion: This study showed that Leishmania DNA could be efficiently ex-tracted and amplified even from old Giemsa-stained microscopic slides that were stored more than 6 yr. In this study was shown that both L. tropica and L. major species exist in Lorestan Province. https://ijpa.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijpa/article/view/480 https://ijpa.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijpa/article/download/480/477