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Heilmann RM, Riggers DS, Trewin I, Köller G, Kathrani A. Treatment success in cats with chronic enteropathy is associated with a decrease in fecal calprotectin concentrations. Front Vet Sci 2024; 11:1390681. [PMID: 38634105 PMCID: PMC11022500 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1390681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Feline chronic enteropathies (FCE) are challenging to diagnose and monitor for progression and response to treatment. Fecal calprotectin might be a useful non-invasive marker to evaluate clinical endpoints of therapeutic monitoring in FCE. We evaluated fecal calprotectin concentrations in cats with FCE before and after initiation of treatment comprised of immunomodulation and/or dietary intervention. Included were 17 cats with FCE and 18 healthy controls. Clinical investigation of FCE cases included clinical severity grading (feline chronic enteropathy activity index, FCEAI) in all cats, abdominal ultrasonography in 15 cats, and gastrointestinal biopsies in 6 cats. Fecal calprotectin was measured in samples from 12 cats with FCE before treatment, all 17 FCE cats ≥6 weeks after treatment initiation, and all healthy controls. Fecal calprotectin concentrations in FCE cases before treatment (median: 61 μg/g) were significantly higher than after treatment initiation (median: 15 μg/g; p = 0.0098) and compared to controls (median: 6 μg/g; p = 0.0235) and correlated with the FCEAI scores (ρ = 0.54, p = 0.0316). Fecal calprotectin concentrations after treatment initiation were higher with more severe duodenal/proximal jejunal pathology (ρ = 0.83, p = 0.0427) and shorter intervals between sampling time points (ρ = -0.54, p = 0.0250). Relevant decreases in initially increased fecal calprotectin concentrations are seen in cats with FCE on varying treatment strategies that significantly improve or have remission of clinical signs. This supports the utility of fecal calprotectin as a surrogate biomarker to assess disease severity in FCE cases. Further studies need to evaluate fecal calprotectin concentrations longitudinally in relation to mucosal healing vs. clinical response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romy M Heilmann
- Department for Small Animals, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Denise S Riggers
- Department for Small Animals, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Isla Trewin
- Department of Clinical Science and Services, Royal Veterinary College, London, United Kingdom
| | - Gábor Köller
- Department for Large Animals, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Aarti Kathrani
- Department of Clinical Science and Services, Royal Veterinary College, London, United Kingdom
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Questa M, Weimer BC, Fiehn O, Chow B, Hill SL, Ackermann MR, Lidbury JA, Steiner JM, Suchodolski JS, Marsilio S. Unbiased serum metabolomic analysis in cats with naturally occurring chronic enteropathies before and after medical intervention. Sci Rep 2024; 14:6939. [PMID: 38521833 PMCID: PMC10960826 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-57004-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic enteropathies (CE) are common disorders in cats and the differentiation between the two main underlying diseases, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and low-grade intestinal T-cell lymphoma (LGITL), can be challenging. Characterization of the serum metabolome could provide further information on alterations of disease-associated metabolic pathways and may identify diagnostic or therapeutic targets. Unbiased metabolomics analysis of serum from 28 cats with CE (14 cats with IBD, 14 cats with LGITL) and 14 healthy controls identified 1,007 named metabolites, of which 129 were significantly different in cats with CE compared to healthy controls at baseline. Random Forest analysis revealed a predictive accuracy of 90% for differentiating controls from cats with chronic enteropathy. Metabolic pathways found to be significantly altered included phospholipids, amino acids, thiamine, and tryptophan metabolism. Several metabolites were found to be significantly different between cats with IBD versus LGITL, including several sphingolipids, phosphatidylcholine 40:7, uridine, pinitol, 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid, and glucuronic acid. However, random forest analysis revealed a poor group predictive accuracy of 60% for the differentiation of IBD from LGITL. Of 129 compounds found to be significantly different between healthy cats and cats with CE at baseline, 58 remained different following treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Questa
- Department of Medicine and Epidemiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Bart C Weimer
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, 100K Pathogen Genome Project, University of California School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Oliver Fiehn
- West Coast Metabolomics Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Betty Chow
- VCA Animal Specialty & Emergency Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Steve L Hill
- Veterinary Specialty Hospital, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Mark R Ackermann
- US Department of Agriculture, National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA, USA
| | - Jonathan A Lidbury
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Joerg M Steiner
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Jan S Suchodolski
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Sina Marsilio
- Department of Medicine and Epidemiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.
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Barko PC, Williams DA, Wu YA, Steiner JM, Suchodolski JS, Gal A, Marsilio S. Chronic Inflammatory Enteropathy and Low-Grade Intestinal T-Cell Lymphoma Are Associated with Altered Microbial Tryptophan Catabolism in Cats. Animals (Basel) 2023; 14:67. [PMID: 38200798 PMCID: PMC10777963 DOI: 10.3390/ani14010067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic inflammatory enteropathy (CIE) and low-grade intestinal T-cell lymphoma (LGITL) are common chronic enteropathies (CE) in cats. Enteric microbiota dysbiosis is implicated in the pathogenesis of CE; however, the mechanisms of host-microbiome interactions are poorly understood in cats. Microbial indole catabolites of tryptophan (MICT) are gut bacterial catabolites of tryptophan that are hypothesized to regulate intestinal inflammation and mucosal barrier function. MICTs are decreased in the sera of humans with inflammatory bowel disease and previous studies identified altered tryptophan metabolism in cats with CE. We sought to determine whether MICTs were decreased in cats with CE using archived serum samples from cats with CIE (n = 44) or LGITL (n = 31) and healthy controls (n = 26). Quantitative LC-MS/MS was used to measure serum concentrations of tryptophan, its endogenous catabolites (kynurenine, kynurenate, serotonin) and MICTs (indolepyruvate, indolealdehyde, indoleacrylate, indoleacetamide, indoleacetate, indolelactate, indolepropionate, tryptamine). Serum concentrations of tryptophan, indolepropionate, indoleacrylate, indolealdehyde, indolepyruvate, indolelactate were significantly decreased in the CIE and LGITL groups compared to those in healthy controls. Indolelactate concentrations were significantly lower in cats with LGITL compared to CIE (p = 0.006). Significant correlations were detected among serum MICTs and cobalamin, folate, fPLI, and fTLI. Our findings suggest that MICTs are promising biomarkers to investigate the role of gut bacteria in the pathobiology of chronic enteropathies in cats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick C. Barko
- Departments of Veterinary Clinical Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61802, USA
| | - David A. Williams
- Departments of Veterinary Clinical Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61802, USA
| | - Yu-An Wu
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Joerg M. Steiner
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Jan S. Suchodolski
- Gastrointestinal Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Arnon Gal
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Medicine, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61802, USA
| | - Sina Marsilio
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Epidemiology, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Davis, CA 95616, USA
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Miller J, Żebrowska-Różańska P, Czajkowska A, Szponar B, Kumala-Ćwikła A, Chmielarz M, Łaczmański Ł. Faecal microbiota and fatty acids in feline chronic enteropathy. BMC Vet Res 2023; 19:281. [PMID: 38124157 PMCID: PMC10731866 DOI: 10.1186/s12917-023-03824-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Feline chronic enteropathy is a set of disorders defined as the presence of clinical signs of gastrointestinal disease for at least three weeks. The most common final diagnoses are inflammatory bowel disease and alimentary small cell lymphoma. The etiopathogenesis of these diseases is incompletely understood; however, it is hypothesised that they involve a combination of factors, including altered composition and/or functionality of the intestinal microbiome. An important factor in the interplay of the microbiome and host is the production of short- and branched-chain fatty acids. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible differences in faecal microbiota diversity, composition and fatty acid production between cats suffering from chronic enteropathy and healthy cats. Sixteen cats suffering from chronic enteropathy and fourteen healthy control cats were enrolled in the study. The microbiota compositions of faecal samples were analysed by using next-generation amplicon sequencing of the V3V4 fragment of the 16S rRNA gene. Fatty acids were evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS Both the alpha and beta diversities were significantly lower in samples obtained from cats with chronic enteropathy. The relative abundance of the phylum Proteobacteria, orders Lactobacillales and Enterobacterales, family Enteriobacteriaceae and genus Escherichia Shigella were higher in diseased cats, whereas the abundance of the phylum Bacteroidota and order Peptococcales were higher in control cats. The faecal concentrations of short-chain fatty acids were higher in cats with chronic enteropathy, with lower propionate proportions and higher butyrate proportions. CONCLUSION The study revealed alterations in microbiota compositions and short-chain fatty acid concentration in cats suffering from chronic enteropathy, which is an important finding both for research on the pathogenesis of the disease and for potential therapeutic interventions in the form of faecal microbiota transplantation and/or probiotic supplementation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Miller
- Department of Immunology, Pathophysiology and Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Norwida 31, Wroclaw, 50-375, Poland.
| | - Paulina Żebrowska-Różańska
- Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Aleksandra Czajkowska
- Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Bogumiła Szponar
- Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Aleksandra Kumala-Ćwikła
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland
| | | | - Łukasz Łaczmański
- Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
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Kim JY, Hwang TS, Jung DI, Song KH, Song JH. Case report: Lymphocytic-plasmacytic and eosinophilic enterocolitis presented with marked eosinophilia and basophilia in a cat. Front Vet Sci 2023; 10:1153702. [PMID: 37732139 PMCID: PMC10507168 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1153702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Inflammatory bowel disease is a common condition in cats, characterized by recurring gastrointestinal signs with histologic evidence of intestinal inflammation. A 9-month-old neutered male Sphynx cat was presented with a 5-week history of vomiting and hematochezia. Conservative patient management with a therapeutic gastrointestinal formula, antibiotics, and antiemetics resulted in a positive response to treatment, with relapse of signs when the medications were discontinued. A new finding of marked eosinophilia and basophilia was identified 3 months after the initial presentation. Colonoscopy revealed cecal erosions and a surgical biopsy with histopathology confirmed a diagnosis of lymphocytic-plasmacytic and eosinophilic enterocolitis. For this diagnosis, the patient was treated with prednisolone, tylosin, and metronidazole. Antibiotics were gradually tapered as the cat showed clinical improvement. The patient showed resolution of the gastrointestinal signs, and the numbers of eosinophils and basophils returned within the reference range 8 weeks after the treatment began. Basophilia and eosinophilia has been reported in conjunction with feline T-cell lymphoma. However, marked basophilia accompanying eosinophilia is extremely rare in cats with inflammatory bowel disease. We herein provide clinical details, including ultrasonography, endoscopy, histopathology, and disease course of feline lymphocytic-plasmacytic and eosinophilic enterocolitis with marked basophilia and eosinophilia. This case highlights the importance of considering enteritis as potential diagnoses when eosinophilia and basophilia are concurrently observed in cats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin-Young Kim
- Department of Veterinary Internal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Tae-Sung Hwang
- Institute of Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea
| | - Dong-In Jung
- Institute of Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea
| | - Kun-Ho Song
- Department of Veterinary Internal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Joong-Hyun Song
- Department of Veterinary Internal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
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Febo E, Del Signore F, Bernabò N, Paolini A, Simeoni F, De Bonis A, Rosto M, Canal S, Vignoli M. Ultrasonography and Sonoelastography Characteristics of Benign vs. Malignant Mesenteric Lymph Nodes in Cats: An Update. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:2664. [PMID: 37627454 PMCID: PMC10451840 DOI: 10.3390/ani13162664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Revised: 08/11/2023] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
(1) Background: Strain elastography (SE) is an ultrasound-based technique able to non-invasively assess tissue elasticity, with malignant tissues being stiffer than normal tissues. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of SE to differentiate feline mesenteric benign and malignant lymph nodes (LNs) using a multivariate approach including both SE results and B-mode ultrasound and color Doppler findings. (2) Methods: Feline enlarged mesenteric LNs were evaluated using B-mode ultrasound, color Doppler ultrasonography, and SE. Short-to-long axis ratios, borders, echogenicity, hilum, vascular flow distribution, elastographic patterns, and strain ratios were recorded. Histological and/or cytological diagnosis was available for each LN. (3) Results: A total of 88 LNs were included, 46 (52.3%) benign and 42 (47.7%) malignant; in the benign group, 40 LNs had a diagnosis of reactive hyperplasia (group A) and 6 eosinophilic sclerosing lymphadenitis (group B), while in the malignant group 42 had a diagnosis of lymphoma (group C). The principal component analysis approach showed evidence that by combining B-mode- and color Doppler-based scores with SE scores, the three groups of LNs can be accurately distinguished. (4) Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that a multivariate sonographic approach combining B-mode ultrasound, color Doppler ultrasonography, and SE can accurately distinguish benign from malignant LNs, thus helping in the clinical advice of feline patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Francesca Del Signore
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Teramo, Località Piano D’ Accio, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (E.F.); (N.B.); (F.S.); (A.D.B.); (M.R.); (S.C.); (M.V.)
| | | | - Andrea Paolini
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Teramo, Località Piano D’ Accio, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (E.F.); (N.B.); (F.S.); (A.D.B.); (M.R.); (S.C.); (M.V.)
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