Veno-occlusive Disease of the Liver in Captive Cheetah

Gosselin, Sylvie; Loudy, D. L.; Tarr, Melinda J.; Balistreri, William F.; Setchell, Kenneth D.R.; Johnston, J.O'Neal; Kramer, Lynn W.; Dresser, B. L.

doi:10.1177/030098588802500107

Cited by 28 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The cheetah population lacks the genetic diversity of most species, which could result in higher prevalences of uncommon diseases, such as glomerulosclerosis and veno-occlusive disease. 16,29 High dietary protein also may influence the development of sclerosis in cheetahs, because captive cheetahs are fed predominantly skeletal meat 6-7 days a week. 22 In the wild they eat muscle meat and viscera of small antelope, rodents, and birds, but seldom eat daily.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glomerulosclerosis in Captive Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)

Bolton

Munson

1999

Vet Pathol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is an endangered species with low fecundity and premature death in captivity. A previous survey determined that renal failure as a result of glomerulosclerosis was a major cause of death in captive populations. This study characterizes the morphologic, histochemical, and epidemiologic properties of glomerulosclerosis in this population. Kidneys from 87 cheetahs were examined by light microscopy; kidneys from six of those cheetahs were examined by electron and fluorescent microscopy using special stains specific for collagen, glycoproteins, reticulin, and fibrin. Immunohistochemistry for the advanced glycosylation end products (AGEs), pyrraline and pentosidine, also was performed on these cases. Glomerulosclerosis was present to some degree in 82% of the population, and in 30% of cheetahs the sclerosis was moderate to severe. Affected cheetah kidneys had thickened glomerular and tubular basement membranes, culminating in glomerulosclerosis. Thickened basement membranes were positive for collagen, glycoproteins, reticulin, and AGEs. Ultrastructurally, membrane material was homogeneous and fibrillar without electron-dense deposits. This glomerular lesion in cheetahs resembles diabetic glomerulopathy in humans and chronic progressive nephropathy in rats. No cheetahs had lesions of diabetes. However, adrenal cortical hyperplasia was prevalent and highly correlated with glomerulosclerosis in this population. If cheetahs with glomerulosclerosis had hypercorticoidism, then hyperglycemia and glomerular hypertension could lead to progressive AGE and plasma protein accumulations in membrane lesions. As in rats, daily feeding of high-protein diets and lack of genetic variation in the population may further contribute to the high prevalence of glomerulosclerosis in captive cheetahs.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glomerulosclerosis in Captive Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)

Bolton

Munson

1999

Vet Pathol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Despite obvious improvements in husbandry since cheetahs were first kept in captivity, they still suffer from a range of unusual diseases not typically seen in other large captive felids. These include glomerulosclerosis [1–4], renal amyloidosis [4], lympho-plasmacytic gastritis [2,5,6], veno-occlusive disease [2,7], splenic myelolipomas, cardiac fibrosis [2,4], adrenal cortical hyperplasia [1,2,4,8] with lymphocytic depletion of the spleen [2], pancreatic atrophy [2] as well as several ill-defined disorders of the neurological system [2,9]. Some of these chronic degenerative diseases eventually affect the majority of cheetahs in captivity and are considered to be the primary cause of morbidity and mortality in adult animals [2,10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative Serum Fatty Acid Profiles of Captive and Free-Ranging Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) in Namibia

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) are highly specialised large felids, currently listed as vulnerable on the IUCN red data list. In captivity, they are known to suffer from a range of chronic non-infectious diseases. Although low heterozygosity and the stress of captivity have been suggested as possible causal factors, recent studies have started to focus on the contribution of potential dietary factors in the pathogenesis of these diseases. Fatty acids are an important component of the diet, not only providing a source of metabolisable energy, but serving other important functions in hormone production, cellular signalling as well as providing structural components in biological membranes. To develop a better understanding of lipid metabolism in cheetahs, we compared the total serum fatty acid profiles of 35 captive cheetahs to those of 43 free-ranging individuals in Namibia using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The unsaturated fatty acid concentrations differed most remarkably between the groups, with all of the polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids, except arachidonic acid and hypogeic acid, detected at significantly lower concentrations in the serum of the free-ranging animals. The influence of age and sex on the individual fatty acid concentrations was less notable. This study represents the first evaluation of the serum fatty acids of free-ranging cheetahs, providing critical information on the normal fatty acid profiles of free-living, healthy individuals of this species. The results raise several important questions about the potential impact of dietary fatty acid composition on the health of cheetahs in captivity.

show abstract

“…Of particular concern is the finding that the estimated isoflavone intake of cubs reared on some milk replacers analysed in this study was 4–6 mg/MBW (for 1–5 kg cubs), when 3.95–4.70 mg/MBW has been shown to modulate sex steroid receptor expression and uterine histology in domestic cats (Bell et al, 2008), despite no detectable effect on puberty onset or oestrous cycle parameters (Bell et al, 2007). On the contrary, the involvement of isoflavones in liver pathology of the cheetah is still unclear, and the role of hypervitaminosis A is now considered a more likely candidate for liver pathology in the cheetah (Gosselin et al, 1988).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure of growing and adult captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) to dietary isoflavones: twenty years later

Bell

Rutherfurd

Hendriks

2010

Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Dietary isoflavones are associated with oestrogenic and anti-oestrogenic effects, and have been linked to infertility in cheetahs. This study aimed to determine the isoflavone content of commercially prepared diets consumed by captive cheetahs. Sixteen international zoological facilities provided diets, and the isoflavone content of each diet was determined by acid hydrolysis and HPLC quantification. Proximate nutritional composition was also determined. Over half the diets analysed contained detectable concentrations of isoflavones, whereby total isoflavone content ranged from 1.75-183 mg/kg dry matter. The zoo-specific diets were calculated to deliver a median isoflavone dose of 0.07 mg/kg body weight (BW) and a maximum of 1.95 mg/kg BW to captive cheetahs. On a metabolic body weight basis this equates to a maximum of 4.90-5.43 mg/kg(0.75) . Some diets prepared for hand-rearing neonatal cheetahs could expose neonates to doses of up to 4.24 mg/kg BW (or 4.24-6.33 mg/kg(0.75) for cubs under 3 months of age). Only one of six zoo-specific diets was found to deliver isoflavones in doses shown to possess biological activity in other species. Therefore, on average, dietary isoflavones were not found in commercially prepared diets consumed by captive cheetahs in concentrations predicted to cause physiological changes. However, a small proportion of these diets, including hand-rearing formulas, contained elevated isoflavones concentrations which may influence cheetah fertility, behaviour or other physiological parameters.

show abstract

Veno-occlusive Disease of the Liver in Captive Cheetah

Cited by 28 publications

References 20 publications

Glomerulosclerosis in Captive Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)

Glomerulosclerosis in Captive Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)

Comparative Serum Fatty Acid Profiles of Captive and Free-Ranging Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) in Namibia

Exposure of growing and adult captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) to dietary isoflavones: twenty years later

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About