Leishmania in the Old World: 5. Numerical analysis of isoenzyme data.

Numerical analysis of 59 zymodemes of Old World Leishmania, based on the enzyme profiles of 280 stocks, revealed several distinct clusters. Some of these clusters corresponded with traditional taxonomic groupings: L. major, L. tropica, L. aethiopica and L. donovani sensu lato, but hitherto unrecognized groups were also indicated. The analysis provided an overview of the interrelationships between the Leishmania zymodemes.