by Hailu A, Musa A.M, Royce C, Wasunna M. PLoS Med, July 2005, 2(7):e211.
Summary: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), commonly known as kala azar, from the Hindu vernacular, is a human systemic disease caused by parasitic protozoan species of the genus Leishmania. Transmitted by the bite of the tiny and seemingly innocuous female phlebotomine sandfly, the parasite enters macrophages, where it multiplies and establishes the infection.