Abstract
Canine babesiosis is a tick-borne disease with a worldwide distribution, caused by the haemoprotozoan parasites of the genus Babesia. One of the most prevalent complication is acute kidney injury, and an early diagnosis of altered kidney function remains a challenge for veterinary practice. The aim of this study was to assess the urine metabolic profile from dogs with babesiosis and different degree of kidney function using untargeted and targeted MS-based metabolomics approaches. In this study, 22 dogs naturally infected with Babesia canis and 12 healthy dogs were included. Untargeted metabolomics approach identified 601 features with a differential abundance between the healthy group and groups of dogs with babesiosis and different level of kidney function, with 27 of them identified as a match to known standards; while targeted approach identified 17 metabolites with significantly different concentrations between the groups. A pattern of significantly altered metabolites referring to the inflammatory host response, oxidative stress, and energy metabolism modulation in babesiosis was presented. Our findings have demonstrated that kidney dysfunction accompanying canine babesiosis was associated with changes in amino acid metabolism, energy metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and biochemical pathways such as urea cycle and ammonia detoxication. These findings will enable the inclusion of urinary markers for the detection and monitoring of renal damage in babesiosis, as well as in other similar diseases.
Highlights
Babesiosis is one of the most important vector-borne zoonoses worldwide
Urine samples were analysed by untargeted hydrophilic interaction chromatography-mass spectrometry (HILIC-MS) and targeted liquid chromatography (LC) and flow injection analysis (FIA) coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) to obtain the urinary metabolomic profiles and pathways associated with canine babesiosis accompanied with kidneyfunction
12 healthy dogs and 22 dogs naturally infected with B. canis were included and divided into three groups based on their kidney function assessments
Summary
Babesiosis is one of the most important vector-borne zoonoses worldwide. It is a widespread haemoprotozoan disease with a considerable global economic and health impact that can infect various vertebrate hosts, including humans (Bilicet al., 2018). The main cause of canine babesiosis in Europe is Babesia canis. Canine B. canis infection has been reported in different European countries and sporadically around the world, with the prevalence ranging from 2.3 up to 44.8% (Bilicet al., 2018). Acute kidney injury (AKI), recognized as one of the most prevalent complication of canine babesiosis, causes azotemia and uremia in dogs due to a decrease of the glomerular filtration rate (Lobetti et al, 1996; Máthé et al, 2007). Diagnosis and monitoring of an altered kidney function remains a challenge in clinical veterinary practice, and there is a need for the identification of novel markers for an early and site-specific detection of kidney dysfunction
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