The effect of adding oral dexamethasone to feed alterations on the airway cell inflammatory gene expression in stabled horses affected with recurrent airway obstruction.
Abstract: Chemokine expression in airway epithelium and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cells of horses with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is increased. Objective: For RAO-affected horses that are stabled and fed a pelleted ration, the addition of oral dexamethasone further improves pulmonary function and reduces inflammatory gene expression in pulmonary cells. Methods: Twelve RAO-affected horses. Methods: In a randomized cross-over experiment, the effect of feeding pellets in lieu of hay to stabled, RAO-affected horses was compared with the effect of feeding pellets and administering a 21-day decreasing dose regimen of oral dexamethasone on the expression (by kinetic polymerase chain reaction) of interleukin-8 (IL-8), chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 2 (CXCL2), IL-1beta, IL-6, and beta-actin in the BALF cells and of IL-8, CXCL2, 2 IL-1 receptor (IL-1R2), Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase in the bronchial epithelium 2 days after the final dose. Results: Both treatments reduced airway neutrophilia and breathing efforts but the addition of dexamethasone was associated with fewer treatment failures. Compared with feed changes alone, dexamethasone administration further reduced the expression of IL-8, CXCL2, and IL-1beta in the BALF cells 3.3-, 2.5-, and 4.7-fold, respectively. In the airway epithelium, both treatments were equally efficacious in reducing the expression of IL-8 and CXCL2 expression relative to pretreatment values, but either treatment failed to alter the expression of IL-1R2 and TLR4. Conclusions: For a rapid and consistent improvement in pulmonary function and a reduction in inflammatory gene expression of the BALF cells, a decreasing dose of oral dexamethasone in combination with feed alterations is more efficacious for horses that must remain stabled.
Publication Date: 2008-03-10 PubMed ID: 18346142DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-1676.2008.0055.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.
- Journal Article
- Randomized Controlled Trial
- Research Support
- U.S. Gov't
- Non-P.H.S.
- Airway Disease
- Animal Health
- Bronchi
- Bronchoalveolar Lavage
- Cells
- Chemokines
- Clinical Study
- Dexamethasone
- Disease Treatment
- Equine Diseases
- Equine Health
- Feeding Practices
- Horses
- Inflammation
- Inflammatory Response
- Pulmonary Health
- Recurrent Airway Obstruction
- Respiratory Disease
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Research
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 focuses on how the addition of oral dexamethasone to feed changes in stabled horses affected with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) can improve lung function and decrease inflammatory gene expression in lung cells, offering a more effective treatment strategy.
Research Objective
- The objective of the research was to evaluate the effect of oral dexamethasone in conjunction with alterations in feed, on the pulmonary function and inflammatory gene expression in horses suffering from recurrent airway obstruction (RAO). The study aimed to compare this outcome with the effect of changing feed alone, without the addition of dexamethasone.
Research Method
- A total of 12 RAO-affected horses were randomly assigned to test the two treatment approaches: altering the feed from hay to pellets alone and altering the feed from hay to pellets in conjunction with a 21-day decreasing dose regimen of oral dexamethasone.
- The change in inflammatory gene expression was measured using kinetic polymerase chain reaction (kPCR) after each treatment for a set of inflammatory markers (IL-8, CXCL2, IL-1beta, IL-6, beta-actin, and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cells and bronchial epithelium of the horses.
Research Conclusion
- Both treatment strategies led to a reduction in airway inflammation and the effort required for the horse to breathe. However, the addition of oral dexamethasone was associated with fewer treatment failures compared to feed changes alone.
- The results revealed that oral dexamethasone combined with feed alteration lead to a significant decrease in the expression of IL-8, CXCL2, and IL-1beta in the BALF cells by 3.3-, 2.5-, and 4.7-fold respectively, compared to feed changes alone.
- In the airway epithelium, both treatments were equally effective in reducing the expression of IL-8 and CXCL2 relative to pre-treatment values, but failed to significantly alter the expression of IL-1R2 and TLR4.
- The study concluded that for faster and consistent improvement in lung function and reduction in inflammatory gene expression in BALF cells, a decreasing dose of oral dexamethasone along with feed modifications proved more effective for stabled horses with RAO. This suggested that dexamethasone could be a valuable addition to the treatment regimen for managing RAO in stabled horses.
Cite This Article
APA
DeLuca L, Erb HN, Young JC, Perkins GA, Ainsworth DM.
(2008).
The effect of adding oral dexamethasone to feed alterations on the airway cell inflammatory gene expression in stabled horses affected with recurrent airway obstruction.
J Vet Intern Med, 22(2), 427-435.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-1676.2008.0055.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animal Feed / adverse effects
- Animals
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents / pharmacology
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents / therapeutic use
- Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / cytology
- Chemokines / biosynthesis
- Chemokines / genetics
- Cross-Over Studies
- Dexamethasone / pharmacology
- Dexamethasone / therapeutic use
- Epithelial Cells / metabolism
- Female
- Gene Expression Profiling
- Gene Expression Regulation / drug effects
- Horse Diseases / drug therapy
- Horses
- Housing, Animal
- Inflammation / drug therapy
- Inflammation / veterinary
- Lung Diseases, Obstructive / drug therapy
- Lung Diseases, Obstructive / veterinary
- Male
Citations
This article has been cited 7 times.- Adamič N, Prpar Mihevc S, Blagus R, Kramarič P, Krapež U, Majdič G, Viel L, Hoffman AM, Bienzle D, Vengust M. Effect of intrabronchial administration of autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells on severe equine asthma.. Stem Cell Res Ther 2022 Jan 21;13(1):23.
- Mainguy-Seers S, Lavoie JP. Glucocorticoid treatment in horses with asthma: A narrative review.. J Vet Intern Med 2021 Jul;35(4):2045-2057.
- Davis KU, Sheats MK. Differential gene expression and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage cells from horses with mild/moderate neutrophilic or mastocytic inflammation on BAL cytology.. Vet Immunol Immunopathol 2021 Apr;234:110195.
- Bond SL, Hundt J, Léguillette R. Effect of injected dexamethasone on relative cytokine mRNA expression in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in horses with mild asthma.. BMC Vet Res 2019 Nov 6;15(1):397.
- Bond S, Léguillette R, Richard EA, Couetil L, Lavoie JP, Martin JG, Pirie RS. Equine asthma: Integrative biologic relevance of a recently proposed nomenclature.. J Vet Intern Med 2018 Nov;32(6):2088-2098.
- Couëtil LL, Cardwell JM, Gerber V, Lavoie JP, Léguillette R, Richard EA. Inflammatory Airway Disease of Horses--Revised Consensus Statement.. J Vet Intern Med 2016 Mar-Apr;30(2):503-15.
- Beekman L, Tohver T, Dardari R, Léguillette R. Evaluation of suitable reference genes for gene expression studies in bronchoalveolar lavage cells from horses with inflammatory airway disease.. BMC Mol Biol 2011 Jan 28;12:5.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
