Akihiro Mori

Ezetimibe is a cholesterol absorption inhibitor that blocks the intestinal absorption of both biliary and dietary cholesterol, thereby lowering primarily low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-chol) in human studies. This study aimed to investigate the effects of ezetimibe on dyslipidemia control in nine dogs with hypercholesterolemia. Changes in total cholesterol (T-chol) and each lipoprotein fractions were evaluated at 0, 2, and 4 months following initiation of ezetimibe treatment. A significant decrease in T-chol was observed, and a mean T-chol concentration below 400 mg/dL was achieved at 2 and 4 months. Furthermore, a significant decrease in LDL-chol was observed (-53.3% and -64.3% at 2 and 4 months, respectively). Taken together, treatment of ezetimibe could lower LDL-chol levels in dogs with hypercholesterolemia.

A 10-year-old castrated male cat showing behavioral (irritation, prowling, and tumbling) and cutaneous abnormalities such as dermal fragility was diagnosed as hyperadrenocorticismwith pituitary macroadenoma, concurrent with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. Pituitary enlargement (18.0 mm) was observed during magnetic resonance imaging. High endogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone levels (>2,500 pg/ml) were also observed.Although trilostane treatment (5-10 mg/head, daily) was commenced, the clinical signs did not disappear. Insulin and trilostane treatment were discontinued on day 86 after first day of radiation therapy (4 Gy/12 fractions). After radiation therapy, a decreased pituitary tumor size (10.7 mm) was observed on day 301; neurological and dermatological signs exhibited remission. Radiation therapy is the treatment of choice for feline hyperadrenocorticismwith pituitary macroadenoma with neurological signs.

In the present study, we used next-generation sequencing to investigate the impacts of two commercially available prescription diet regimens on the fecal microbiomes of eleven client-owned healthy pet dogs. We tested an anallergenic diet on 6 dogs and a low-fat diet on 5 dogs. Before starting the study, each dog was fed a different commercial diet over 5 weeks. After collecting pre-diet fecal samples, the anallergenic or low-fat diet was administered for 5 weeks. We then collected fecal samples and compared the pre- and post-diet fecal microbiomes. In the dogs on the anallergenic diet, we found significantly decreased proportions of Bacteroides, Ruminococcaceae, and Fusobacteriaceae, belonging to the phyla Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Fusobacteria, respectively. The proportion of the genus Streptococcus belonging to the phylum Firmicutes was significantly increased upon administering the anallergenic diet. In the dogs on the low-fat diet, although the phyla Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes tended to increase (p=0.116) and decrease (p=0.147) relative to the pre-diet levels, respectively, there were no significant differences in the proportions of any phylum between the pre- and post-diet fecal microbiomes. The anallergenic diet induced a significantly lower diversity index value than that found in the pre-diet period. Principal coordinate analysis based on unweighted UniFrac distance matrices revealed separation between the pre- and post-diet microbiomes in the dogs on the anallergenic diet. These results suggest that, even in pet dogs kept indoors in different living environments, unification of the diet induces apparent changes in the fecal microbiome.

BACKGROUND: Hyperadrenocorticism (HAC) is a common endocrine disorder in dogs; however, there are no reports on the use of the corticotropin-releasing hormone test (CRHT) to differentiate between pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism (PDH) and cortisol-producing adrenal tumors (CPATs), both causative of HAC. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the usefulness of CRHT as a tool to differentiate between PDH and CPAT in dogs and to determine the reference intervals for CRHT in healthy, PDH, and CPAT dogs. ANIMALS: Dogs diagnosed with PDH (n = 21), CPAT (n = 6), and healthy beagle dogs (n = 33). METHODS: This prospective study included dogs with a definitive diagnosis of PDH and CPAT and healthy beagle dogs, in which CRHT was performed, were prospectively evaluated. We investigated the correlations of CRHT (endogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone [ACTH] concentration, endogenous ACTH concentration [EAC], and poststimulation ACTH concentration [PAC]) with pituitary-to-brain ratio (PBR) (in PDH) and with indices of adrenal ultrasonography (smaller and larger adrenal gland dorsoventral thickness in PDH and CPAT). RESULTS: For EAC, the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.95, with a cutoff value of 26.3 pg/mL (sensitivity: 90.62%, specificity: 87.50%). The AUC for PAC was 0.96 with a cutoff value of 54.5 pg/mL (sensitivity: 100.00%, specificity: 66.67%). The 95% reference interval for CRHT in healthy (control) dogs ranged 5.00 to 79.8 pg/mL (1.10-17.57 pmol/L) for EAC, and 1.92 to 153.42 pg/mL (0.42-33.78 pmol/L) for PAC. There was no significant correlation between PBR and CRHT, nor adrenal size and CRHT. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: CRHT appears to be a rapid and reliable test for differentiating PDH from CPAT in dogs.