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Background & Aims of the Study: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is considered one of the most important human vector-borne diseases in Iran. The current study aimed to determine some epidemiological aspects of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Mazandaran, Northern Iran. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study was conducted using the epidemiological data, including demographic and clinical features collected from 379 patients diagnosed with leishmaniasis in health centers affiliated to the Deputy for Health Center of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences within 2009-2017. The disease was diagnosed based on clinical information and direct microscopic examination of the samples. Data were analyzed in SPSS software using nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests. Results: A total number of 379 individuals were diagnosed with CL during a 9-year period. Considering the population in Mazandaran, the incidence rate was reported as 1.27 per 100,000 population. It was also revealed that most of the cases of CL (n=279; 73.6%) were males and the majority of patients (n=137; 36.1%) were in the 20-29 age group. In addition, the majority of the ulcers were observed in hand (n=152; 26.7%) and foot (n=129; 22.6%), respectively. Moreover, just one ulcer was spotted in most of the patients (n=143; 37.7%). As the final note, the incidence was at the highest level during autumn in November (n=61; 16.1%). Conclusion: As evidenced by the obtained results, cutaneous leishmaniasis poses a daunting challenge to the public health in Mazandaran. This disease can be attributed to several factors, including agricultural activities, animal husbandry, and frequent national and international holidaymakers' visits to the province. With this background in mind, the results of the currents study could contribute greatly to the effective control of this disease

Background\ud Insecticide resistance of Anopheles stephensi, the main malaria vector in eastern Afghanistan, has been reported previously. This study describes the biochemical and molecular mechanisms of resistance to facilitate effective vector control and insecticide resistance management.\ud \ud Methods\ud Mosquito larvae were collected from the provinces of Kunar, Laghman and Nangarhar from 2014 to 2017. The susceptibility of the reared 3–4 days old adults was tested with deltamethrin 0.05%, bendiocarb 0.1%, malathion 5%, permethrin 0.75% and DDT 4%. Cytochrome P450 content and general esterase, glutathione S-transferase (GST) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activities were measured in the three field populations and the results were compared with those of the laboratory susceptible An. stephensi Beech strain. Two separate allele-specific PCR assays were used to identify L1014, L1014F and L1014S mutations in the voltage gated sodium channel gene of An. stephensi. Probit analysis, ANOVA and Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium were used to analyse bioassay, biochemical assay and gene frequency data respectively.\ud \ud Results\ud The population of An. stephensi from Kunar was susceptible to bendiocarb, apart from this, all populations were resistant to all the other insecticides tested. The differences between all values for cytochrome P450s, general esterases, GSTs and AChE inhibition rates in the Kunar, Laghman and Nangarhar populations were statistically significant when compared to the Beech strain, excluding GST activities between Kunar and Beech due to the high standard deviation in Kunar. The three different sodium channel alleles [L1014 (wild type), L1014F (kdr west) and L1014S (kdr east)] were all segregated in the Afghan populations. The frequencies of kdr east mutation were 22.9%, 32.7% and 35% in Kunar, Laghman and Nangarhar populations respectively. Kdr west was at the lowest frequency of 4.44%.\ud \ud Conclusions\ud Resistance to different groups of insecticides in the field populations of An. stephensi from Kunar, Laghman and Nangarhar Provinces of Afghanistan is caused by a range of metabolic and site insensitivity mechanisms, including esterases, cytochrome P450s and GSTs combined with AChE and sodium channel target site insensitivity. The intensity and frequency of these mechanisms are increasing in these populations, calling for urgent reorientation of vector control programmes and implementation of insecticide resistance management strategies.dr