Leishmania (Viannia) lainsoni
is the
Leishmania species that presents the most distinct biological (morphology, growth in axenic culture medium), biochemical (enzymatic electrophoresis profile), and molecular biology characteristics, when compared to other species of the
Viannia subgenus. Development of promastigote forms of this parasite attached to the wall of the pyloric and hind gut regions of sand fly vectors is a solid characteristic that allows its positioning in the
Viannia subgenus. However, taxonomic data from biochemical and molecular techniques on this
Leishmania species are still not conclusive. It is evident the difficulty in taxonomically positioning this borderline
Leishmania species. In this review we present the data accumulated since
L. (Viannia) lainsoni has been described and we discuss its position in the
Viannia subgenus.
