Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
KC-like protein as a sepsis marker in dogs with pyometra
By Hagman, Ragnvi et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2024·Department of Clinical Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: KC-like chemokine as a biomarker of sepsis in dogs with pyometra.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with a serious uterine infection called pyometra were studied to see if a specific protein, KC-like, could help identify those with sepsis, a life-threatening infection. The researchers found that dogs with both pyometra and sepsis had higher levels of this protein compared to those with just pyometra or healthy dogs. The study indicated that higher KC-like levels were linked to more severe illness and longer hospital stays. While KC-like shows promise as a marker for sepsis in these dogs, more research is needed to fully understand its role.
People also search for: dog pyometra symptoms · sepsis in dogs treatment · KC-like protein in dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Sepsis, defined as a dysregulated inflammatory response to infection inducing organ dysfunction, is a common cause of mortality in both humans and animals. Early detection and treatment is essential for survival, but accurate diagnosis is challenging due to the lack of specific biomarkers for sepsis. This study explored the potential of the keratinocyte-derived chemokine (KC)-like protein in dogs as a biomarker of sepsis in dogs with bacterial uterine infection (pyometra). The aim was to compare KC-like concentrations in dogs with pyometra with or without sepsis and to assess associations between KC-like and clinical variables, including days of hospitalization as an outcome. RESULTS: A mouse KC ELISA was validated and used to determine the concentrations of KC-like in serum from 34 dogs with pyometra and 18 healthy controls. Dogs with pyometra were classified as having sepsis based on two different criteria for systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), resulting in 74% and 30% sepsis-positive, respectively. The concentration of KC-like protein was higher in pyometra dogs with sepsis than in pyometra dogs without sepsis (p < 0.05) and in healthy controls (p < 0.0001) when using either of the two SIRS criteria. Moreover, KC-like was slightly increased in dogs with pyometra without sepsis compared with healthy controls when using the more stringent SIRS criteria (p < 0.05). Analyses of all dogs showed that KC-like concentrations correlated positively with hospitalization days, C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations, white blood cells, and percentage of band neutrophils; however, KC-like correlated negatively with hemoglobin and did not correlate with circulating creatinine. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that circulating KC-like protein increases in dogs with sepsis in pyometra and that KC-like is associated with more severe clinical illness. These findings support a potential role of KC-like as a biomarker of sepsis; however, the true identity of KC-like in dogs has yet to be uncovered.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39272157/