Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How heartworm infection changes dog blood sugar patterns
By Behrens, Anna-Janina et al.·Published in Scientific reports·2018·New England Biolabs Inc., United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Changes in canine serum N-glycosylation as a result of infection with the heartworm parasite Dirofilaria immitis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs infected with heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) showed noticeable changes in their blood chemistry over time. Specifically, the study found that certain sugar structures in their blood decreased or increased as the infection progressed. For instance, a key sugar structure decreased significantly within the first six months of infection. This research helps us understand how heartworm affects dogs at a biological level, which could lead to better treatments in the future.
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Abstract
Filariases are diseases caused by infection with filarial nematodes and transmitted by insect vectors. The filarial roundworm Dirofilaria immitis causes heartworm disease in dogs and other carnivores. D. immitis is closely related to Onchocerca volvulus, Wuchereria bancrofti and Brugia malayi, which cause onchocerciasis (river blindness) and lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis) in humans and are neglected tropical diseases. Serum N-glycosylation is very sensitive to both pathological infections and changes in mammalian biology due to normal aging or lifestyle choices. Here, we report significant changes in the serum N-glycosylation profiles of dogs infected with D. immitis. Our data derive from analysis of serum from dogs with established patent infections and from a longitudinal infection study. Overall, galactosylation and core fucosylation increase, while sialylation decreases in infected dog sera. We also identify individual glycan structures that change significantly in their relative abundance during infection. Notably, the abundance of the most dominant N-glycan in canine serum (biantennary, disialylated A2G2S2) decreases by over 10 percentage points during the first 6 months of infection in each dog analyzed. This is the first longitudinal study linking changes in mammalian serum N-glycome to progression of a parasitic infection.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30413744/