Expressão de nefrina e caracterização da medula óssea em cães com doença renal crônica

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is developed for long periods and regardless of the primary cause has high morbidity and mortality in dogs, especially due to complications inherent in its progression. The diagnosis of CKD is based on the intensity of azotemia, persistent proteinuria, decreased ability to concentrate urine, sonographic and histopathologic changes. New diagnostic methods that allow earlier detection and location of the lesion include urinary GGT-creatinine ratio, Cystatin C, protein electrophoresis and protein expression associated with the podocytes, as nephrin. The progression of CKD involves complex factors that culminate in clinical changes, which the most limiting is chronic anaemia. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of CKD in the bone marrow in dogs relating the clinical, laboratory and detection of Ehrlichia canis and Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi to nephrin expression in the urinary sediment. Sixty-nine dogs were grouped into stages of CKD according to the concentrations of serum creatinine. Hematological analysis, serum and urinary biochemistry, urinalysis, serum erythropoietin and myelogram were performed and compared to the dogs of the control group, composed by nine healthy dogs. The nephrin expression was quantified in urine sediment by 2-ΔΔCt method, while the DNA of E. canis and L. (L.) infantum chagasi was detected in samples of blood and / or bone marrow. The dogs showed mild to moderate normocytic normochromic anaemia and bone marrow hypoplasia was described in 93.65% of them. There was a correlation between hematological findings and azotemia, and between nephrin expression and urinary specific gravity in dogs from stage 3. There was no correlation between nephrin expression and the infectious agents studied. Therefore, it is concluded that anaemia in CKD result of erythroid hypoplasia in all stages and of iron deficiency in the early stages and that nephrin expression decreases progressively with the worsening of CKD, with no correlation with E. canis and L. (L.) infantum chagasi.