Influence of Short and Medium Distance Road Transport on the Acute Phase Proteins in Horses

Abstract

Horse transport is a common practice and is usually associated as a cause of stress in animals, with consequences for their well-being. There are several of evidence that stress can increase an acute phase response. The aim of this study was to verify whether the road transport of horses over distances of 50 and 300 kilometers induces changes in the values of acute phase proteins. To do this, the serum SDS-PAGE was performed and the bands obtained were identified by mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF). The blood samples were collected in tubes without anticoagulant to obtain the serum, and the evaluations occurred before the road transportation (T0), immediately after the journey (T1), six hours later (T2), and 24 hours (T3), 48 hours (T4), 72 hours (T5), 96 hours (T6), 120 hours (T7) and 144 hours (T8) after the end of the trip. All analyzes were performed using the Minitab 17 statistical package, and significance was considered when P<0.05. The APPs found through SDS-PAGE and properly identified were α2-macroglobulin, ceruloplasmin, transferrin, albumin, α1-antitrypsin, haptoglobin, apolipoprotein alpha 1, and α1-acid glycoprotein. No differences were observed in the concentration values between 50 and 300 km or between the moments after each route. The distances covered with the horses were not challenging enough to provoke an acute phase response reflected in changes in APPs.