[Molecular epidemiology of the leprosy].

Application of molecular biological techniques to the epidemiological study of leprosy is described. Studies of detecting Mycobacterium leprae DNA in samples of the nasal mucus are discussed in terms of the epidemiology and the significance of high prevalence. Epidemiological studies on the transmission of leprosy and correlation between geographic distribution of different M. leprae rpoT genotypes and prehistoric spread of the leprosy by genotyping based on the genomic polymorphism are introduced.