Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Evaluation of serum cytokine levels in recurrent airway obstruction.
- Journal:
- Polish journal of veterinary sciences
- Year:
- 2016
- Authors:
- Niedźwiedź, A et al.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
Recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is a serious condition in horses that can cause breathing problems due to allergic reactions. In a study involving 40 horses, 30 had RAO while 10 were healthy. Researchers measured certain proteins in the blood that are involved in immune responses, finding that levels of two specific proteins, IL-13 and IFN-gamma, were significantly higher in the horses with RAO compared to the healthy ones. This suggests that the immune response in horses with RAO is more complicated than previously thought. Overall, the findings indicate that there are distinct immune changes in horses suffering from RAO.
Abstract
Recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) represents a serious health problem and is traditionally classified as an allergic disease, where contact with an antigen can induce clinical airway inflammation, bronchial hyper-responsiveness and reversible airway obstruction. Previous studies have demonstrated the presence of the Th2 response in the lungs of human patients with asthma and horses with heaves. These cells are involved in the production of cytokines which regulate the synthesis of immunoglobulins. 40 horses were evaluated: 30 horses with RAO and 10 healthy animals. The expression levels of interferon-alpha 1 (IFN-α1), interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), interleukin-1β, (IL-1β), IL-2, IL-4, IL-13 and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were measured in the serum obtained from control and RAO-susceptible horses during crisis. In all the patients, serum cytokine levels were detected. Serum median IL-13 and IFN-γ levels were significantly higher in RAO-affected horses than in the healthy group (p < 0.001). The serum median IFN-α1, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, and TNF-α levels were similar in both groups. These results indicate a low variability of the levels of cytokines and a high frequency of their detection in serum samples from horses with RAO. Immune mechanisms involved in equine RAO are more complex than those defined by a simple Th1/Th2 dichotomy.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28092612/