Lipoproteins during the estrous cycle in swine

Effect of estrous cycle phase on clinical pathology values in beagle dogs

BACKGROUND

In dogs, the diestrus phase is considerably longer than in most domestic animals, and is characterized by high circulating progesterone concentrations that may influence clinical pathology values.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this retrospective study was to investigate differences in clinical pathology data in dogs in diestrus compared with data from dogs in all other phases of the estrous cycle.

METHODS

Phase of the estrous cycle was determined by histologic evaluation of reproductive tissues from 86 control female Beagles that had participated in 23 toxicity studies. Serum biochemical, hematologic, and urinalysis values from dogs in diestrus were compared with data from dogs in all other estrous cycle phases using a 2-tailed t-test.

RESULTS

In Beagles in diestrus (n = 38), serum cholesterol concentrations and eosinophil counts were 35% (P < .0001) and 45.8% (P = .0035) higher, respectively, than for Beagles in all other phases of the estrous cycle (n = 48). Furthermore, Beagles in diestrus had 14% lower AST activity (P = .0011), 1% lower chloride concentration (P = .0224), 7.8% lower hemoglobin concentration (P < .0001), 7.8% lower RBC count (P < .0001), and 7.6% lower hematocrit (P < .0001) compared with female dogs in all other phases of the estrous cycle. Urine values did not differ significantly between groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Differences in clinical pathology values between dogs in different phases of the estrous cycle could potentially confound interpretation of data in toxicity studies, which often have small group sizes. Interpretation of clinical pathology data in female dogs should be performed with due consideration given to the phase of the estrous cycle.

Effect of exercise on postprandial lipemia following a higher calorie meal in Yucatan miniature swine

Exercise has been shown to attenuate the postprandial lipemic (PPL) response to a modest kcal high-fat meal in numerous human studies, but has not been fully examined in swine. In addition, the effects of exercise on a high-fat meal of larger magnitude have not been examined in humans or in swine. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the PPL response to a single, high-fat/cholesterol (HFC) meal (approximately 3,000 kcal, 1,300 kcal from fat) and determine if exercise attenuates the PPL response. Sedentary, female Yucatan miniature swine (n = 10) completed 3 PPL trials: (1) pre diet (PRE); (2) post HFC diet (POST); and (3) post HFC diet plus exercise (EX, 45 minutes at 75% heart rate maximum). Blood samples were collected before (0 hour) and at 2, 4, 6, and 8 hours after the single HFC meal for PPL analysis. Postheparin lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity was assessed at 8 hours. While fasting LPL activity was significantly increased with the HFC diet, the PPL response to the HFC meal did not differ depending on diet. Furthermore, the PPL response was not significantly altered with a single session of exercise, perhaps because of the severity of the HFC meal, the sedentary nature of the swine, or because LPL activity was not elevated after exercise. These findings suggest that administration of a HFC meal of this magnitude (approximately 3,000 kcal, 1,300 kcal from fat) will promote significant elevations in postprandial triglyceride (TG) concentrations, overwhelm the adaptive response to a HFC diet (elevated LPL activity), and attenuate the beneficial effects of a single exercise session on this system.