Yellow Fat Disease Research Articles

The gene IFIT1 is associated with dietary copper‐induced yellow fat disease in sheep

AbstractIn the process of rapid fattening and rearing of meat sheep, yellow fat disease of sheep occurs frequently. This study aims to investigate the preliminary pathogenesis of yellow fat disease in sheep. Eighteen healthy sheep (4–5 months old, 34 ± 1 kg) were selected and randomly divided into three groups: the 10 ppm copper group, the 50 ppm copper group, and the 100 ppm copper group. At the end of the experiment, blood, liver, kidney, and adipose tissue samples were taken from all sheep, and measurements of each index were taken. 50 and 100 ppm copper supplementation in the diets did not significantly affect average daily gain, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and sorbitol dehydrogenase in sheep but significantly increased the effects on gamma‐glutamyltransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase enzyme activities in the liver and increased the accumulation of copper in the liver. 50 and 100 ppm copper supplementation to the feed caused different levels of pathological damage to the liver, the kidney, and fat and significantly affected the brightness, redness, and yellowness of the carcass fat. Sheep in the 50 ppm copper group did not show significant clinical symptoms of yellow fat disease in the later period of the experiment, but those in the 100 ppm copper group showed significant clinical symptoms of yellow fat disease. Transcriptome analysis of sheep livers showed differential genes associated with yellow fat disease, and GO and KEGG analyses associated with yellow fat disease were performed, and further correlation analysis found that the occurrence of copper‐induced yellow fat disease may be closely related to gene IFIT1.

A Summary of New Findings on the Biological Effects of Selenium in Selected Animal Species-A Critical Review.

Selenium is an essential trace element important for many physiological processes, especially for the functions of immune and reproductive systems, metabolism of thyroid hormones, as well as antioxidant defense. Selenium deficiency is usually manifested by an increased incidence of retention of placenta, metritis, mastitis, aborts, lowering fertility and increased susceptibility to infections. In calves, lambs and kids, the selenium deficiency demonstrates by WMD (white muscle disease), in foals and donkey foals, it is associated with incidence of WMD and yellow fat disease, and in pigs it causes VESD (vitamin E/selenium deficiency) syndrome. The prevention of these health disorders can be achieved by an adequate selenium supplementation to the diet. The review summarizes the survey of knowledge on selenium, its biological significance in the organism, the impact of its deficiency in mammalian livestock (comparison of ruminants vs. non-ruminants, herbivore vs. omnivore) and possibilities of its peroral administration. The databases employed were as follows: Web of Science, PubMed, MEDLINE and Google Scholar.

Yellow fat disease (steatitis) in 20 equids: Description of clinical and ultrasonographic findings

SummaryDiagnosis of steatitis can be challenging due to nonspecific clinical signs and ultrasonography might be a useful aid for making a diagnosis. The objective of this retrospective clinical case study was to describe history, clinical signs, ultrasonographic findings, treatment and outcome in equids with steatitis. The medical records of all equids presented to the Department of Large Animal Internal Medicine, Ghent University between January 2008 and December 2015 were reviewed retrospectively to identify horses suffering from steatitis. A total of 20 cases with steatitis were reviewed. History included dullness, recumbency, decreased appetite and weight loss. Fever, ventral oedema, stiff/painful gait and a painful neck were found. Low haematocrit, low vitamin E and selenium and increased levels of creatinine kinase and particularly lactate dehydrogenase were almost consistent findings. On ultrasound, ventral oedema was found. Ventral extraperitoneal, perirenal, mesenteric, coronary and caudal mediastinal fat showed homogenously increased echogenicity. The ventral extraperitoneal fat in particular was surrounded by oedema or free fluid. Increased amounts of abdominal, thoracic and pericardial fluid were often found. Fat biopsies were taken in the neck, or from the ventral extraperitoneal fat in the ventral flank. Steatitis was confirmed in all horses where a fat biopsy was taken (n = 13). Treatment consisted of selenium and vitamin E (intramuscular injection followed by oral treatment) supplementation and anti‐inflammatory treatment (dexamethasone or prednisolone parenteral or oral) for at least 1–4 weeks. A total of 15 animals (75%) survived. Full recovery took about 2–6 months. In conclusion, steatitis is an uncommon disease in young horses usually seen during winter. It may be underdiagnosed because of nonspecific clinical signs. Ultrasonography is a useful aid for the diagnosis of yellow fat disease based upon the increased echogenicity of ventral extraperitoneal, perirenal, mesenteric, coronary and caudal mediastinal fat and increased amount of surrounding fluid.

Clinical Research Abstracts of the British Equine Veterinary Association Congress 2015.

Yellow fat disease or steatitis is characterised by a local or general inflammation of fat tissue and is occasionally found in horses. Diagnosis is challenging because of the wide range of nonspecific clinical signs. To describe clinical signs, treatment, outcome and ultrasonographic findings in horses with steatitis. Retrospective study (January 2008 to January 2015). History, clinical signs, ultrasonographic findings, diagnosis, treatment and outcome were recorded. Twenty cases (18 horses, 2 donkeys; 9 mares, 9 stallions, 2 geldings) were retrieved from 13,707 patient records. Mean age was 1.6 (± 0.8) years (range 1 month-3.5 years). All cases appeared between October and February except for one (August). History included dullness, recumbency, decreased appetite and weight loss. Fever, ventral oedema, stiff/painful gait and painful neck were found. Low haematocrit, low vitamin E and selenium and increased levels of creatinine kinase and particularly lactate dehydrogenase were almost consistent findings. On ultrasound, ventral oedema was found. Subperitoneal, perirenal, mesenteric, coronary and caudal mediastinal fat showed homogenously increased echogenicity. Especially the subperitoneal fat was surrounded by oedema or free fluid. Increased amounts of abdominal, thoracic and pericardial fluid were often found. Fat biopsies were taken in the neck or from the retroperitoneal fat in the ventral flank. In all horses where fat biopsy was taken (n = 13), steatitis was confirmed. Treatment consisted of selenium and vitamin E (intra-muscular injection followed by oral treatment) supplementation and anti-inflammatory treatment (dexamethasone or prednisolone parenteral or oral) for at least 1-4 weeks. Fourteen animals (70%) survived. Full recovery took about 2-6 months. Yellow fat disease may be underdiagnosed because of the nonspecific clinical signs. Ultrasound was extremely helpful for making a diagnosis. Recovery was rather slow but was achieved in 70% of the animals. Ethical animal research: Research ethics committee oversight not currently required by this conference: retrospective study of clinical records. Explicit owner informed consent for inclusion of animals in this study was not stated. Ghent University (institutional). Competing interests: None declared.

Piscivory does not cause pansteatitis (yellow fat disease) in Oreochromis mossambicus from an African subtropical reservoir

Summary Pansteatitis (yellow fat disease) is ubiquitous in the free‐ranging population of Oreochromis mossambicus from Loskop Reservoir (LR), South Africa. The disease is nutritionally mediated and associated with a diet high in polyunsaturated or rancid fats, frequently of fish origin. While piscivory has never been reported in dietary studies of O. mossambicus in their native range, their opportunistic and omnivorous feeding habits mean that piscivory cannot be ruled out as a cause of the disease. The diet of O. mossambicus from LR (n = 91) was compared with a population from Flag Boshielo Reservoir (FBR; n = 81) located <100 km downstream, where no pansteatitis occurs. The stomach contents and stable isotope signatures (δ15N and δ13C) of fish and food sources were evaluated across four seasons. Isotope signatures were also compared over various time scales from historic samples and mortalities collected from LR. There was no evidence of piscivorous feeding behaviour in fish from either location or from historic LR samples. The results of the stable isotope analysis in R mixing model and stomach contents analysis showed that the dinoflagellate, Ceratium hirundinella, was the dominant food source followed by zooplankton, detritus and Microcystis aeruginosa in LR. The diet of fish from FBR was less diverse than fish from LR and was dominated by sediment and detritus. The distinguishing feature of the dietary comparison between reservoirs was the abundance of planktonic food items dominated by C. hirundinella in the diet of fish from LR. The lack of evidence for piscivory among O. mossambicus from LR suggests that the classic aetiology of pansteatitis does not apply. This highlights the need to further explore direct (environmental exposure to pollutants) and indirect (dietary exposure) links to pansteatitis. This study identified the major dietary constituents for O. mossambicus, which enables future research to focus on their nutritional and chemical composition.

Esteatosis en un burro (Equus asinus). Primer reporte en Colombia

RESUMENSe describe un caso de esteatosis en un burro (Equus asinus), castrado, de 15 añosde edad, procedente del municipio de San Antero (Córdoba, Colombia), al cual se ledetectó ligamento nucal engrosado, duro y doloroso, dando la impresión de un doblecuello y edemas subcutáneos indurados en pared costal, abdominal y pectoral. Tambiénpresentó masas duras en la unión de músculos semimembranoso y semitendinoso. Portodo lo anterior, mostró dificultad para realizar movimientos coordinados del cuello,nuca y de traslado. Estos hallazgos obedecen principalmente a una deficiencia deselenio y vitamina E, sirviendo como parámetro diagnóstico para la identificación deesta enfermedad en equinos, por lo cual se determinó la actividad eritrocitica de laenzima glutatión peroxidada (GSH-Px), arrojando resultados muy bajos. Este cuadroes también conocido en equinos como enfermedad de la grasa amarilla o esteatitis, queproduce degeneración del tejido adiposo, siendo reemplazado por tejido conectivo condepósitos de calcio. Puede estar asociada a miodegeneración nutricional o distrófica(enfermedad del músculo blanco). Es el primer reporte de esta enfermedad en burros(Equus asinus) que se hace en Colombia.

Early Changes of Yellow Fat Disease in Mink fed a Vitamin-E Deficient Diet supplemented with Fresh or Oxidised Fish Oil

Early Changes of Yellow Fat Disease in Mink fed a Vitamin-E Deficient Diet supplemented with Fresh or Oxidised Fish Oil

Yellow fat disease in equids

Yellow fat disease in equids

Fat Embolism Secondary to Yellow Fat Disease in an Appaloosa Horse

A 4-year-old female Appaloosa horse was referred to the Department of Comparative Pathology, Veterinary Faculty, with a history of colic and acute respiratory distress. At necropsy, gross lesions consisted of extensive firm, multinodular, hemorrhagic foci in fat tissues with yellow-brown discoloration. The most affected areas were peritoneal fat and perirenal, epicardial, and subcutaneous adipose tissues. Other findings were hepatic lipidosis and multiple 1-1.5 cm hemorrhagic foci scattered in both lungs. Histopathological examination revealed severe degeneration and necrosis of adipose tissue with dystrophic calcification. The necrotic fat was infiltrated by abundant foamy macrophages and multinucleated giant cells. Based on these histopathological changes, yellow fat disease, also called nutritional panniculitis, was diagnosed. In addition, the microscopic examination of lung and kidney sections stained with osmium tetroxide and oil red O revealed numerous lipid droplets within glomerular and alveolar septal capillaries. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first description of the development of fat embolism in horses affected by yellow fat disease.

Blood α-Tocopherol, Selenium, and Glutathione Peroxidase Changes and Adipose Tissue Fatty Acid Changes in Kittens with Experimental Steatitis (Yellow Fat Disease): A Comparative Study Between the Domestic Shorthaired and Siamese Breed

Twenty domestic shorthaired (DSH) and 20 Siamese (S) kittens were allocated into 4 breed-specific groups, of 10 kittens each, that were fed exclusively cooked sardines (F groups) or commercial feline canned food based on oily fish (C groups) for a 4-month period. Clinical signs were scored every 15 d along with body weight recording and blood sampling for the measurement of alpha-tocopherol and selenium (Se) concentrations and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity. Subcutaneous adipose tissue samples were obtained per month to determine its fatty acid composition. Steatitis, reproduced in all 20 F-group kittens, was accompanied by systemic signs in 5 DSH and 6 S animals. The severity of the disease reached its zenith at the second week in the DSH-F-group kittens and the fourth and sixth week in the S-F-group kittens. alpha-Tocopherol plasma level was significantly lower in F groups compared to their corresponding controls, whereas the opposite was true for Se and red blood cell GSH-Px activity. In conclusion, the results of this study have shown that although the morbidity rate is not different between the two breeds, the delay of Siamese cats to develop symptomatic steatitis is presumably attributed to an inherent resistance as a result of the long-standing evolution of more efficient antioxidant mechanisms. Also, the changes in fatty acid composition of the adipose tissue lipids are associated with the progression of the age, breed, and diet and probably with the inflammatory changes of the adipose tissue.

ビタミンE添加の市販フードを主食とする猫にみられた黄色脂肪症

ビタミンE添加の市販フードを主食とする猫にみられた黄色脂肪症

Feline Pansteatitis: A Report of Five Cases

Pansteatitis (yellow fat disease, panniculitis, steatitis) is an inflammatory disease of adipose tissue throughout the body (Holzworth 1987). It was first experimentally induced by Mason & Dam in 1946 in cats fed a diet deficient in vita-min E and high in cod liver oil (Mason & Dam 1946). It has since been reported as a clinical condition by several authors (Cordy & Stil-linger 1953, Watson et al 1973, Gaskell et al 1975, Summers et al 1982, Hagiwara et al 1986). Pansteatitis occurs naturally in cats, mink, and pigs as a result of vitamin E deficiency. Vitamin E (α-tocopherol) is a biological antioxidant found in vegetable oils (Holzworth 1987). It serves as a protector of the fats in the diet and in the body. Pansteatitis is caused by a mismatch between intake of unsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants, i.e. vitamin E. The ensu-ing peroxidation of the body fat causes a for-eign body reaction with severe inflammation and cell death. The foremost clinical sign is hy-peraesthesia or severe pain on palpation/han-dling, especially over the back and of the abdo-men. The final diagnosis rests with the histo-logical findings of the above-mentioned lesions in conjunction with acid-fast ceroid pigment (i.e. end-product of lipid peroxidation) in fat cells, in macrophages, in Langhans-type giant cells, and extracellularly (Holzworth 1987).

Pansteatitis (Steatitis, “Yellow Fat Disease”) in the Cat: A Review Article and Report of Four Spontaneous Cases

Abstract— Pansteatitis was recognized in four cats fed a diet based mainly on oily fish. Except for fever, these cats had all the other typical findings of the disease, namely hyperesthesia, painful, nodular‐to‐irregular subcutaneous masses, neutrophilic leukocytosis, firm and discolored subcutaneous fat, and lobular and septal pyogranulomatous panniculitis with necrosis, mineralization, and ceroid pigment deposition. Three of the cats responded well to treatment and became clinically normal after 1 month, the fourth was lost to follow‐up.Résumé— Une panstéatite a été reconnue chez 4 chats alimentés pricipalement avec du poisson gras. Exception falte de la fièvre, ces chats présentéalent les signes caractériqtiques de cette affection: hyperesthé‐sie, douleur, masses sour‐cutanées nodulaires á irrégullères, tissue adipeux sous‐cutané dur et décoloré et pannicullte pyogranulomateuse septale avec nécrose, minéralisation et dépot de pigment céroïde. Trois des chats ont bien répondu au traitement et sont redevenus cliniquement normauz en un mois. Le quatrième n'a pas pu être suivi.Zusammenfassung— Bei 4 Katzen, die mit einer Diät ernährt wurden, die hauptsächlich aus fettreichem Fisch bestand, wurde eine Pansteatitis festgestellt. Mit Ausnahme von Fieber zeigten diese Katzen all die anderen typischen Symptome diesser Krankheit, nämlich Hypersästhesie, Schmerz, noduläre bis unregelmäßig geformte subkutane Gebilde, Leukozytose mit Neutrophilie, verhärtetes und farblich verändertes subkutanes Fett, lobuläre und septale pyogranulomatöse Pannikulitis mit Nekrose, Mineralisation und Einlagerung von zeroidem Pigment. Drei der Katzen sprachen gut auf die Therapie an und wurden nach einem Monat klinisch gesund. Bei der 4. Katze war der Krankheitsverlauf nicht weiter verfolgbar.Resumen En 4 gatos alimentados en una dieta basada fundamentalmente en pescado azul, se diagnosticó pansteataitis. Excepto por la aparición de la fiebre, éstos gatos presentaron los hallazgos clínicos típicos de la enfermedad, hiperestesia, dolor, nódulos o masas irregulares en el tejido subcutáneo, leucocitosis neutrofilica, grasa subcutánea descolorida y de consistencia firme, y paniculitis piogranulomatosa de tipo septal y lobular con la presencia de necrosis, mineralización y pigmento de deposición ceroide. Tres de los gatos respondieron favorablemente al tratamiento y llegaron a ser completamente normales despues de un mes, en el cuarto no se pudo hacer un seguimiento clinico.

養成シマアジにみられた黄色脂肪症の病理組織学的所見

養成シマアジにみられた黄色脂肪症の病理組織学的所見

Evaluation of vitamin E requirement and food palatability in rabbits fed a purified diet with a high fish oil content

The vitamin E requirement of rabbits fed a semi-synthetic diet containing high amounts of fish oil was studied. Three groups of 5 rabbits were fed fish oil diets containing, respectively, 50, 100 and 500 mg/kg vitamin E. Moreover diet palatability was evaluated by using different levels of grass meal: 0.5, 1 and 2%, respectively. Incorporation of 1% grass meal in the diet was sufficient to achieve acceptance of the fish oil diet. Increased vitamin E intake resulted in a dose-related rise in vitamin E levels in serum, blood platelets, liver and adipose tissue. The higher vitamin E intake was reflected by a twofold increase of vitamin E in serum, platelets and adipose tissue, and a tenfold increase in the liver. The adipose tissue revealed histopathological changes of yellow fat disease, mainly in the low-dose vitamin E group. In the liver microgranulomas of lipofuscin-laden macrophages were seen. Vitamin E was found to decrease but not to prevent the formation of these lesions. The results indicate that protection of marine oils against in vivo oxidation is problematic in the rabbit. It is questionable whether in this animal vitamin E is an adequate biological anti-oxidant for very long chain n-3 fatty acids.

Polyunsaturated fatty acid and peroxide levels in rations for fitch(Mustela putorius furo)

Abstract Extract Sir: — Nutritional steatitis or yellow fat disease(1) (2) is often fatal. and may cause severe economic loss among farmed fitch (Mustela putorius furo). This disease is the result of peroxidative stress in animals fed diets rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) particularly when these also have a high peroxide value.(2) We have some circumstantial evidence that similar diets can predispose to the fatty liver-agalactia syndrome of nursing jills.(3) One of the properties on which the latter syndrome occurred had fed gutted minced possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) to the affected animals and the problem disappeared when the diet was changed to gutted minced sheep. In a pilot study on this property analysis of the two rations revealed that the possum contained three times the total fatty acid (TFA) and about 10 times the PUFA level of sheep. (Unpublished data)

A case of steatitis and myonecrosis in a donkey foal

Abstract Sir:— Steatitis with myonecrosis has been reported in donkey foals in the United Kingdom(7) Platt, H. and Whitwell, K. E. 1971. Clinical and pathological observations on generalised steatitis in foals. J. comp. Path., 81: 499–506. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] and without myonecrosis in Australia.(8) Vanselow, B.A. and McCauseland, I.P. 1981. Steatitis in two donkey foals. Aust. vet. J., 57: 304–305. [Crossref], [PubMed] , [Google Scholar] This is the first report of steatitis and myonecrosis in donkeys in New Zealand although a similar condition has been found in thoroughbred foals.(5) Harltey, W.J. and Dodd, D.C. 1957. Muscular dystrophy in New Zealand livestock. N.Z. vet. J., 5: 61–66. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar] (3) Dodd, D.C., Blakely, A.A., Thornbury, RS.’ and Dewes, H. F. 1960. Muscle degeneration and yellow fat disease in foals. N.Z. vet. J., 5: 45–50. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]

Studies on Nutritional Myopathy Syndrome in Cultured Fishes-I

In 1974, 1975 and 1976, nutritional myopathy occurred among cultured young puffers (Fugu rubripes) fed frozen fish meat, in a farm in Kagawa Pref. They were very thin and slender in appearance. One hundred and fifty three diseased puffers were examined histopathologically.This case was characterized by degeneration and necrosis of skeletal muscle fibers, proliferation of connective tissue and appearance of ceroid-laden macrophages in the stroma. It was found that such changes advanced more severely and quickly in erector and depressor muscle tissues than in lateral muscle tissues. In advanced cases most of the skeletal muscle fibers disappeared, and the connective tissue proliferated and ceroid-laden macrophages appeared markedly in the stroma.The lipopigment was deposited in parenchymal cells in the liver. This lipopigment was similar to ceroid in histochemical nature except that the pigment had no acid-fastness. Ceroid-laden macrophages appeared in the spleen, kidney and intestine.The present authors consider the above-mentioned changes closely resemble yellow-fat disease in mammals and aves.

Fish oil-induced yellow fat disease in rats. IV. Functional studies of the reticuloendothelial system.

In rats with "stage S/E" yellow fat disease an injection of colloidal carbon resulted in a marked reduction in the number of circulating platelets. The death rate of rats with experimental Listeria monocytogenes infection, the number of bacteria in their spleens and the decrease of bacteria in their spleens on the days after infection were the same in rats with yellow fat disease as in controls. The fact that the rats died during the first few days after infection also may indicate that their immunological resistance to L. monocytogenes was not altered by yellow fat disease.

The Influence of dietary mackerel oil on the condition of organs and on blood lipid composition in the young growing pig

A feeding experiment was carried out in which piglets were fed a diet enriched with either mackerel oil or olive oil. The oil consumption amounted to about 100 g per animal per day. The aim of this experiment was to study the effect of feeding high amounts of fish oil rich in polyunsaturated and long-chain monoenoic acids in order to determine if any morbid changes occurred in the animals as a result of this addition. The piglets fed olive oil served as controls. After 4 weeks, blood hemoglobin, plasma glucose, and serum triglycerides were significantly lower in the mackerel oil group as compared with the control group. There was no difference in serum cholesterol and serum lipid composition. Very low density lipoproteins were lower in the mackerel oil group. The fatty acid composition of blood serum, heart muscle, and liver showed considerable differences, ω3 acids being higher and both ω6 and ω9 acids being lower in the mackerel oil group than in the control group. Some increase in the amount of triglycerides in the heart muscle was observed in the mackerel oil group. Some characteristics of “yellow fat disease” developed in the mackerel oil group. This type of vitamin E deficiency seems to be the result of the considerable amount of ω3 fatty acids present in the mackerel oil. No clinical symptoms due to ingestion of long-chain monoenoic acids were observed.