RT Journal Article T1 Characterization of Leishmania infantum Isolates from Wild Leporids in the Community of Madrid (Spain) A1 Ortega-García, María Victoria A1 García Benzaquén, Nerea A1 Domínguez, Mercedes A1 Moreno, Inmaculada AB In this research, 59 samples from 31 animals (19 European rabbits, 11 Iberian hares, and 1 cat) and an axenic culture of the Leishmania infantum isolate (MCAN/ES/97/10445, zymodeme ZM/MON-1) used as a reference were studied based on the analysis of kinetoplast minicircle (kDNA) restriction fragments by combining polymerase chain reaction and length polymorphisms (PCR-RFLP). This analysis was performed in parallel with polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and capillary electrophoresis (CE), as well as in silico digestion of the abovementioned reference. These analyses did not reveal differences between the L. infantum isolates detected in the different samples of wild lagomorphs (rabbits and hares) from various areas of the Community of Madrid or with the axenically cultured promastigotes of the L. infantum isolate (MCAN/ES/97/10445, zymodeme ZM/MON-1) used as a reference. Consequently, it was proven that with the implemented approaches, only one isolate of L. infantum was responsible for infection in wild leporids and that these animals sustained the pathogen’s life cycle, both in the area of the human leishmaniasis outbreak that has been occurring in the Community of Madrid since 2009 and outside of it. Additionally, this isolate has been circulating since at least the 1990s. PB MDPI YR 2025 FD 2025 LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/129791 UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/129791 LA eng NO Ortega-García, M. V., García, N., Domínguez, M., & Moreno, I. (2026). Characterization of Leishmania infantum Isolates from Wild Leporids in the Community of Madrid (Spain). Veterinary Sciences, 13(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci13010001 NO Justificación de autores:Conceptualization, I.M., M.D. and N.G.; Methodology, I.M., N.G. and M.V.O.-G.; Software, M.V.O.-G.; Validation, I.M., M.D., N.G. and M.V.O.-G.; Formal Analysis, I.M., N.G. and M.V.O.-G.; Investigation, M.V.O.-G.; Resources, I.M., M.D., N.G. and M.V.O.-G.; Data Curation, M.V.O.-G.; Writing—Original Draft Preparation, M.V.O.-G.; Writing—Review and Editing, I.M., M.D. and N.G.; Visualization, I.M., N.G. and M.V.O.-G.; Supervision, I.M., M.D. and N.G.; Project Administration, I.M., M.D. and N.G.; Funding Acquisition, I.M., M.D. and N.G. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. NO Comunidad de Madrid DS Docta Complutense RD 11 ene 2026