Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Fractalkine and receptor linked to lymphocyte buildup in dogs
By Maeda, Shingo et al.·Published in Veterinary immunology and immunopathology·2012·Department of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Increased expression of fractalkine and its receptor CX3CR1 in canine inflammatory bowel disease and their possible role in recruitment of intraepithelial lymphocytes.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 34 dogs diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) showed increased levels of a protein called fractalkine and its receptor, CX3CR1, compared to 19 healthy beagles. This suggests that these proteins may play a role in attracting certain immune cells to the intestines, which could worsen IBD symptoms. The study found that the higher the levels of these proteins, the more severe the intestinal damage appeared to be. Understanding this relationship could help veterinarians develop better treatments for dogs suffering from IBD.
People also search for: dog inflammatory bowel disease symptoms · IBD treatment for dogs · why is my dog vomiting and losing weight
Abstract
The interaction between fractalkine/CX(3)CL1 and its receptor CX(3)CR1 has been reported to play an important role in various human inflammatory diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) mediated by lymphocyte chemoattraction. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 in lymphocyte migration in canine IBD. IBD was diagnosed in 34 dogs, and 19 healthy beagles were used as normal controls. We quantified intestinal mRNA and protein expression of fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 by real-time RT-PCR and ELISA, respectively, and examined the localization of fractalkine in canine intestine by immunohistochemistry. The expression of CX(3)CR1 and surface antigens on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) was analyzed by flow cytometry. Intestinal fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 mRNA was significantly up-regulated in IBD dogs compared with the healthy control dogs. In addition, fractalkine expression on intestinal epithelial cells was significantly increased in the intestinal mucosa of IBD dogs compared with the healthy dogs. CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs were significantly elevated in IBD dogs and positively correlated with the histopathological severity of IELs infiltration. These CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs predominantly expressed markers for cytotoxic T cells. Almost all IELs expressed CD3, and the majority of cells expressed CD8 rather than CD4, which was analogous to the CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs. These results suggest that the fractalkine-CX(3)CR1 interaction may contribute to the pathogenesis of canine IBD through migration of IELs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22648046/