Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
TARC blood levels track severity and treatment in dogs with atopic
By Asahina, Ryota et al.·Published in Veterinary dermatology·2020·Department of Veterinary Medicine, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Serum canine thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17) concentrations correlate with disease severity and therapeutic responses in dogs with atopic dermatitis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with atopic dermatitis (a skin allergy) had their blood tested for a substance called TARC, which can indicate how severe their condition is. The study found that dogs with atopic dermatitis had higher levels of TARC compared to healthy dogs, and these levels decreased after treatment with medications like prednisolone or oclacitinib, which helped improve their symptoms. This suggests that measuring TARC could be useful for veterinarians to assess the severity of atopic dermatitis and how well treatments are working.
People also search for: dog skin allergy treatment · atopic dermatitis in dogs · TARC levels in dogs with skin problems
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of canine atopic dermatitis (cAD). Serum TARC concentrations are a reliable biomarker for human atopic dermatitis; however, their potential as a biomarker for cAD has not been investigated. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether serum TARC concentrations correlate with disease severity and therapeutic responses for cAD. ANIMALS: Thirty-nine dogs with cAD and 42 healthy dogs were recruited. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Serum TARC concentrations in dogs with cAD and healthy dogs were measured by sandwich ELISA with anti-canine TARC antibodies. The clinical severity of cAD was scored using the validated Canine Atopic Dermatitis Extent and Severity Index, 4th iteration (CADESI-04). Serum TARC concentrations were compared between dogs with cAD and healthy controls, and their relationship with CADESI-04 was examined. Serum TARC concentrations also were measured in 20 dogs with cAD treated with prednisolone or oclacitinib for four weeks. RESULTS: Serum TARC concentrations were significantly higher in dogs with cAD than in healthy dogs (P < 0.001). In dogs with cAD, serum TARC concentrations correlated with CADESI-04 scores (ρ = 0.457, P < 0.01). Furthermore, serum TARC concentrations significantly decreased in treated dogs with the attenuation of clinical signs (P < 0.001). Changes in serum TARC concentrations before and after treatment correlated with those in CADESI-04 scores (ρ = 0.746, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Serum TARC concentrations have potential as a clinical and research tool for the objective evaluation of disease severity and therapeutic responses for cAD.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32945018/