FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 9000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Home / Equine Research Bank / J Vet Intern Med / Plasma adrenocorticotropin concentration in healthy horses a...
Journal of veterinary internal medicine1996; 10(1); 1-6; doi: 10.1111/j.1939-1676.1996.tb02016.x

Plasma adrenocorticotropin concentration in healthy horses and in horses with clinical signs of hyperadrenocorticism.

Abstract: Pituitary adenomas are commonly reported in older horses. The typical clinical signs associated with this condition, also known as equine Cushing's disease (ECD), are related to increased adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) production resulting in hyperadrenocorticism. The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether plasma ACTH concentrations differed between cushingoid and healthy horses. The second objective was to determine the effects of blood sample handling techniques on ACTH concentrations. A commercial human ACTH radioimmunoassay (RIA) was used to quantify equine plasma ACTH. Intra-assay and interassay variations, as well as dilutional parallelism were determined during the RIA validation. Plasma ACTH concentrations were evaluated in a group of healthy equids composed of 18 horses and 9 ponies, and in 22 equids with a clinical diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism (11 horses and 11 ponies). The mean plasma ACTH concentrations in healthy horses and ponies, (18.68 +/- 6.79 pg/mL (mean +/- SD) and 8.35 +/- 2.92 pg/mL, respectively), were significantly different (P = .009). The mean plasma ACTH concentration in horses and ponies with ECD, (199.18 +/- 182.82 pg/mL and 206.21 +/- 319.56 pg/mL, respectively), were significantly higher than the mean ACTH concentration in the control animals (P < .001). Plasma ACTH concentrations appeared to be a sensitive and specific indicator of ECD in horses and ponies. ACTH concentrations measured in plasma samples kept at room temperature (19 degrees C) as long as 3 hours after blood collection were not statistically different from those of samples kept at 1 degree C.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 1996-01-01 PubMed ID: 8965262DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-1676.1996.tb02016.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Comparative Study
  • Journal Article
  • Research Support
  • Non-U.S. Gov't

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research article discusses a study on the difference in plasma adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) concentrations between healthy horses and those suffering from equine Cushing’s disease (ECD). It also examines the effects of different blood sample handling techniques on ACTH concentrations.

Research Objectives and Methodology

  • The primary goal of the research was to establish if plasma ACTH concentrations varied between healthy horses and those with ECD, a condition characterized by high ACTH production due to pituitary adenomas (benign tumors in the pituitary gland).
  • The secondary objective was to understand the impact of different blood sample handling techniques on ACTH concentrations.
  • A commercial human ACTH radioimmunoassay (RIA) was employed to measure ACTH in equine plasma. The validation of the RIA involved determining intra-assay and inter-assay variations as well as dilutional parallelism.
  • ACTH concentrations were evaluated in two groups: a healthy group comprising 18 horses and 9 ponies, and a group of 22 equids diagnosed with hyperadrenocorticism (comprising 11 horses and 11 ponies).

Findings of the Study

  • The results showed that mean plasma ACTH concentrations in healthy horses and ponies significantly varied (P = .009), with the levels being 18.68 +/- 6.79 pg/mL (mean +/- SD) and 8.35 +/- 2.92 pg/mL respectively.
  • Horses and ponies diagnosed with ECD demonstrated significantly higher mean plasma ACTH concentrations (199.18 +/- 182.82 pg/mL and 206.21 +/- 319.56 pg/mL, respectively) than the controls (P < .001).
  • The results imply that plasma ACTH concentrations can serve as a specific and sensitive indicator of ECD in horses and ponies.

Effects of Blood Sample Handling

  • The study showed that ACTH concentrations measured in plasma samples kept at room temperature (19 degrees C) as long as three hours after blood collection did not statistically differ from those of samples kept at 1 degree C. This suggests that the handling techniques of blood samples do not significantly affect ACTH concentrations.

Cite This Article

APA
Couëtil L, Paradis MR, Knoll J. (1996). Plasma adrenocorticotropin concentration in healthy horses and in horses with clinical signs of hyperadrenocorticism. J Vet Intern Med, 10(1), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-1676.1996.tb02016.x

Publication

Journal of veterinary internal medicine
ISSN: 0891-6640
NlmUniqueID: 8708660
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 10
Issue: 1
Pages: 1-6

Researcher Affiliations

Couëtil, L
  • Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, North Grafton, MA, USA.
Paradis, M R
    Knoll, J

      MeSH Terms

      • Adrenal Cortex Diseases / blood
      • Adrenal Cortex Diseases / veterinary
      • Adrenocortical Hyperfunction / blood
      • Adrenocortical Hyperfunction / diagnosis
      • Adrenocortical Hyperfunction / veterinary
      • Adrenocorticotropic Hormone / blood
      • Animals
      • Female
      • Horse Diseases / blood
      • Horses / blood
      • Male
      • Radioimmunoassay / veterinary

      Citations

      This article has been cited 23 times.
      1. Stoeckle SD, Timmermann D, Merle R, Gehlen H. Plasma Amino Acids in Horses Suffering from Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction.. Animals (Basel) 2022 Nov 27;12(23).
        doi: 10.3390/ani12233315pubmed: 36496836google scholar: lookup
      2. Kirkwood NC, Hughes KJ, Stewart AJ. Prospective Case Series of Clinical Signs and Adrenocorticotrophin (ACTH) Concentrations in Seven Horses Transitioning to Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (PPID).. Vet Sci 2022 Oct 17;9(10).
        doi: 10.3390/vetsci9100572pubmed: 36288186google scholar: lookup
      3. Kirkwood NC, Hughes KJ, Stewart AJ. Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (PPID) in Horses.. Vet Sci 2022 Oct 10;9(10).
        doi: 10.3390/vetsci9100556pubmed: 36288169google scholar: lookup
      4. Okhovatian F, Rezaei Tavirani M, Rostami-Nejad M, Rezaei Tavirani S. Protein-Protein Interaction Network Analysis Revealed a New Prospective of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.. Galen Med J 2018;7:e1137.
        doi: 10.22086/gmj.v0i0.1137pubmed: 34466439google scholar: lookup
      5. Fortin JS, Hetak AA, Duggan KE, Burglass CM, Penticoff HB, Schott HC 2nd. Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: a spontaneous model of synucleinopathy.. Sci Rep 2021 Aug 6;11(1):16036.
        doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-95396-7pubmed: 34362943google scholar: lookup
      6. Tatum RC, McGowan CM, Dean RS, Ireland JL. Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: Identifying research priorities for diagnosis, treatment and prognosis through a priority setting partnership.. PLoS One 2021;16(1):e0244784.
        doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0244784pubmed: 33395695google scholar: lookup
      7. Horn R, Stewart AJ, Jackson KV, Dryburgh EL, Medina-Torres CE, Bertin FR. Clinical implications of using adrenocorticotropic hormone diagnostic cutoffs or reference intervals to diagnose pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction in mature horses.. J Vet Intern Med 2021 Jan;35(1):560-570.
        doi: 10.1111/jvim.16017pubmed: 33368633google scholar: lookup
      8. Gehlen H, Schwarz B, Bartmann C, Gernhardt J, Stöckle SD. Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction and Metabolic Syndrome in Donkeys.. Animals (Basel) 2020 Dec 8;10(12).
        doi: 10.3390/ani10122335pubmed: 33302557google scholar: lookup
      9. Fortin JS, Benskey MJ, Lookingland KJ, Patterson JS, Howey EB, Goudreau JL, Schott HC 2nd. Restoring pars intermedia dopamine concentrations and tyrosine hydroxylase expression levels with pergolide: evidence from horses with pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction.. BMC Vet Res 2020 Sep 25;16(1):356.
        doi: 10.1186/s12917-020-02565-3pubmed: 32977825google scholar: lookup
      10. Hu K, Stewart AJ, Yuen KY, Hinrichsen S, Dryburgh EL, Bertin FR. The effect of freeze-thaw cycles on determination of immunoreactive plasma adrenocorticotrophic hormone concentrations in horses.. J Vet Intern Med 2020 May;34(3):1350-1356.
        doi: 10.1111/jvim.15771pubmed: 32255541google scholar: lookup
      11. Shepard KN, Haffner JC, Neal DL, Grubbs ST, Pearce GL. Effect of delayed plasma centrifugation on equine adrenocorticotropic hormone concentration.. J Vet Diagn Invest 2019 Jul;31(4):585-587.
        doi: 10.1177/1040638719860877pubmed: 31246158google scholar: lookup
      12. Spelta CW. Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: current perspectives on diagnosis and management.. Vet Med (Auckl) 2015;6:293-300.
        doi: 10.2147/VMRR.S74191pubmed: 30101114google scholar: lookup
      13. Lewis SL, Holl HM, Long MT, Mallicote MF, Brooks SA. Use of principle component analysis to quantitatively score the equine metabolic syndrome phenotype in an Arabian horse population.. PLoS One 2018;13(7):e0200583.
        doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0200583pubmed: 30001422google scholar: lookup
      14. Carmalt JL, Mortazavi S, McOnie RC, Allen AL, Unniappan S. Profiles of pro-opiomelanocortin and encoded peptides, and their processing enzymes in equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction.. PLoS One 2018;13(1):e0190796.
        doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190796pubmed: 29309431google scholar: lookup
      15. Banse HE, Schultz N, McCue M, Geor R, McFarlane D. Comparison of two methods for measurement of equine adrenocorticotropin.. J Vet Diagn Invest 2018 Mar;30(2):233-237.
        doi: 10.1177/1040638717752216pubmed: 29284383google scholar: lookup
      16. Carmalt JL, Waldner CL, Allen AL. Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: An international survey of veterinarians' approach to diagnosis, management, and estimated prevalence.. Can J Vet Res 2017 Oct;81(4):261-269.
        pubmed: 29081583
      17. Secombe CJ, Tan RHH, Perara DI, Byrne DP, Watts SP, Wearn JG. The Effect of Geographic Location on Circannual Adrenocorticotropic Hormone Plasma Concentrations in Horses in Australia.. J Vet Intern Med 2017 Sep;31(5):1533-1540.
        doi: 10.1111/jvim.14782pubmed: 28661009google scholar: lookup
      18. Hatazoe T, Kawaguchi H, Hobo S, Misumi K. Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (equine Cushing's disease) in a Thoroughbred stallion: a single report.. J Equine Sci 2015;26(4):125-8.
        doi: 10.1294/jes.26.125pubmed: 26858577google scholar: lookup
      19. Rendle DI, Duz M, Beech J, Parkin T, Durham AE. Investigation of single and paired measurements of adrenocorticotropic hormone for the diagnosis of pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction in horses.. J Vet Intern Med 2015 Jan;29(1):355-61.
        doi: 10.1111/jvim.12489pubmed: 25312676google scholar: lookup
      20. Wong DM, Vo DT, Alcott CJ, Stewart AJ, Peterson AD, Sponseller BA, Hsu WH. Adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation tests in healthy foals from birth to 12 weeks of age.. Can J Vet Res 2009 Jan;73(1):65-72.
        pubmed: 19337398
      21. Haritou SJ, Zylstra R, Ralli C, Turner S, Tortonese DJ. Seasonal changes in circadian peripheral plasma concentrations of melatonin, serotonin, dopamine and cortisol in aged horses with Cushing's disease under natural photoperiod.. J Neuroendocrinol 2008 Aug;20(8):988-96.
        doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2826.2008.01751.xpubmed: 18540997google scholar: lookup
      22. Sgorbini M, Panzani D, Maccheroni M, Corazza M. Equine cushing-like syndrome: diagnosis and therapy in two cases.. Vet Res Commun 2004 Aug;28 Suppl 1:377-80.
        doi: 10.1023/b:verc.0000045368.38959.8bpubmed: 15373001google scholar: lookup
      23. Panzani D, Vannozzi I, Sgorbini M, Corazza M, Rota A, Pacini M. Embryo recovery rate in a mare affected by Cushing's syndrome.. Vet Res Commun 2003 Sep;27 Suppl 1:619-21.
        doi: 10.1023/b:verc.0000014231.45688.acpubmed: 14535481google scholar: lookup
      Subscribe to our newsletter
      Join 99,344 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.