Aerobic midgut microbiota of sand fly vectors of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis from northern Iran, a step toward finding potential paratransgenic candidates.

The existence of B. subtilis and P. agglomerans in the ZVL vectors and other sand fly species studied so far suggests that these two bacterial species are potential candidates for paratransgenic approach to prevent ZVL transmission. Further research needs to test the possible relationship between the gut microbiome richness and the vector competence of the ZVL vectors.