Is there a functional large intestine in the ferret?

Anatomical features for an adequate choice of the experimental animal model in biomedicine: III. Ferret, goat, sheep, and horse

The anatomical characteristics of each of the many species today employed in biomedical research are very important when selecting the correct animal model(s), especially for conducting translational research. In previous papers, these features have been considered for fish (D'Angelo et al. Ann. Anat, 2016, 205:75), the most common laboratory rodents, rabbits, and pigs (Lossi et al. 2016). I here follow this line of discussion by dealing with the importance of proper knowledge of ferrets, goats, sheep, and horses' main anatomical features in translational research.

Use of Ferrets in Toxicity Testing

A selective review of the literature is presented in order to introduce the reader to the extensive studies conducted in the ferret ( Mustela putorius furo) in such diverse fields as virology, gastroenterology, and teratology. Husbandry, anatomical variations, and the modeling of specific human disorders are discussed to indicate the increasing recognition of this species as a valuable asset in toxicity testing.

Flexible Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Ferrets (Mustela putorius furo)

Gastrointestinal disease is a common complaint in ferrets (Mustela putorius furo). Their relatively simple and short gastrointestinal tract makes them good candidates for flexible endoscopy. However, apart from a few references in biomedical research articles, there is little information on the use of flexible endoscopy in ferrets. This review describes patient preparation, equipment, and select gastrointestinal endoscopy techniques in ferrets, including esophagoscopy, gastroscopy, duodenoscopy, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy, jejunoileoscopy, colonoscopy, and biopsy.

Bioelectric characterization of epithelia from neonatal CFTR knockout ferrets

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-shortening, recessive, multiorgan genetic disorder caused by the loss of CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) chloride channel function found in many types of epithelia. Animal models that recapitulate the human disease phenotype are critical to understanding pathophysiology in CF and developing therapies. CFTR knockout ferrets manifest many of the phenotypes observed in the human disease, including lung infections, pancreatic disease and diabetes, liver disease, malnutrition, and meconium ileus. In the present study, we have characterized abnormalities in the bioelectric properties of the trachea, stomach, intestine, and gallbladder of newborn CF ferrets. Short-circuit current (ISC) analysis of CF and wild-type (WT) tracheas revealed the following similarities and differences: (1) amiloride-sensitive sodium currents were similar between genotypes; (2) responses to 4,4'-diisothiocyano-2,2'-stilbene disulphonic acid were 3.3-fold greater in CF animals, suggesting elevated baseline chloride transport through non-CFTR channels in a subset of CF animals; and (3) a lack of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX)/forskolin-stimulated and N-(2-Naphthalenyl)-((3,5-dibromo-2,4-dihydroxyphenyl)methylene)glycine hydrazide (GlyH-101)-inhibited currents in CF animals due to the lack of CFTR. CFTR mRNA was present throughout all levels of the WT ferret and IBMX/forskolin-inducible ISC was only observed in WT animals. However, despite the lack of CFTR function in the knockout ferret, the luminal pH of the CF ferret gallbladder, stomach, and intestines was not significantly changed relative to WT. The WT stomach and gallbladder exhibited significantly enhanced IBMX/forskolin ISC responses and inhibition by GlyH-101 relative to CF samples. These findings demonstrate that multiple organs affected by disease in the CF ferret have bioelectric abnormalities consistent with the lack of cAMP-mediated chloride transport.

Biology and medicine of the ferret

There is still much more to be learned about ferret behavior, nutrition, and physiologic responses associated with aging, disease, and environmental stimuli. The many similarities in the clinical disorders of ferrets and other small companion animals should emphasize the importance of using the same diagnostic methods developed for common companion animals in examinations of ferrets. There is still very little known of the efficacy of a wide spectrum of drugs in ferrets, and judicious use of pharmacodynamic agents that are safe for cats would be a reasonable approach to drug therapy.

Vagal control of colonic motility in the anaesthetized ferret: evidence for a non-cholinergic excitatory innervation

Spontaneous colonic motility in the urethane-anaesthetized ferret consists of two distinct types of contraction which correspond to the patterns recorded myoelectrically in conscious animals. This motility was abolished or greatly reduced when nervous conduction was prevented in the cervical vagi by cooling to below 4 degrees C. On rewarming the nerves the colonic motility returned, after a short latency, to the pre-cool level. Atropine transiently abolished colonic motility. On its return the motility was significantly reduced but still sensitive to vagal integrity. Thus the atropine-resistant colonic motility was also abolished or markedly reduced by cooling the cervical vagi to below 4 degrees C. On rewarming there was a longer latency for the return of motility compared to that before atropinization. Electrical vagal stimulation produced, after a short latency, large-amplitude colonic contractions. Following atropine, the short-latency response to electrical vagal stimulation was replaced in the majority of animals by a long-latency response whose characteristics were quite different from those of the cholinergic response. These results are consistent with the vagus containing two functional motor pathways to the colon, one to cholinergic post-ganglionic neurones and the other operating via a non-cholinergic mechanism.

Vagal influences on the jejunal 'minute rhythm' in the anaesthetized ferret

Spontaneous jejunal motility in the urethane-anaesthetized ferret shows a cyclical pattern of contraction bursts alternating with quiescent periods described as 'minute rhythm' in conscious animals. Cooling the cervical vagi to below 4 degrees C or acute vagotomy abolished this pattern of motility. On re-warming the vagi there was a return to cyclical motility after a latency which depended upon the contractile state at the time vagal conduction was restored. Electrical vagal stimulation produced bursts of contractions at the same frequency as the spontaneous motility. Longer periods of stimulation gave rise to bursts of contractions interrupted by periods of relative quiescence, mimicking the spontaneous motility, despite the continuous stimulation. Following atropinization all spontaneous motility was abolished, but electrical stimulation of the vagi revealed a non-cholinergic, non-adrenergic response whose characteristics differed from that of the cholinergic response. It is concluded that the vagus plays a permissive role in regulating the jejunal 'minute rhythm' via a cholinergic pathway and that there is a second excitatory vagal pathway which innervates non-cholinergic post-ganglionic neurones whose functional significance and transmitter mechanism is unknown.