Ente Li,1,2,* Qingfeng Zhu,3,* Ziman Lv,1,2,* Songsong Xie,3 Chunju Zhang,4 Wei Li,5 Ligu Mi,1,2 Quan Liu,6 Yuanzhi Wang,1,2 Xiaobo Lu2 

1Department of Basic Medicine, School of Medicine, Shihezi University, Shihezi City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 832002, People’s Republic of China; 2Key Laboratory for Prevention and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases and Public Health Security, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, Shihezi University, Shihezi City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 832002, People’s Republic of China; 3The First Affiliated Hospital of Shihezi University Medical College, Shihezi City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 832002, People’s Republic of China; 4Tumxuk Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Tumxuk City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 843806, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Basic Medicine, School of Medicine, Tarim University, Alaer City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 843300, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Infectious Diseases and Center of Infectious Diseases and Pathogen Biology, Key Laboratory of Organ Regeneration and Transplantation of the Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Zoonotic Diseases, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun City, Jilin Province, 30061, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence: Yuanzhi Wang; Xiaobo Lu, Email wangyuanzhi621@126.com; xjykdluxiaobo@126.com

Abstract: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala-azar. It is characterized by prolonged intermittent fever, anemia, splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, and skin darkening. VL is primarily endemic in regions, such as Brazil, East Africa, and India. However, Northern Xinjiang, which is located in northwestern China, is considered a low-incidence area for VL, contributing to its status as a neglected infectious disease. In this report, we present a case of VL caused by Leishmania donovani that was diagnosed using metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS). This case underscores the diagnostic value of mNGS, particularly in regions with low incidence of VL.

Keywords: Visceral leishmaniasis, Leishmania donovani, metagenomic next-generation sequencing, northwestern China