Eleven healthy dogs, ranging from one to five years old, were used for this study. Base line values were determined through five daily samples of urine for urinalysis and urinary gamma glutamyl transpeptidase activity, and blood for serum dosage of BUN and creatinine. Nephrotoxicity was induced using 10mg/kg of gentamicin, 3 times a day (tid), for 14 days. Urine samples were drawn every 24 hours and blood samples every 48 hours, for 14 days. After this period, the dogs were euthanized and necropsy was done for further histopathologic study. The clinical signs shown by the dogs were lethargy, anorexy, polyuria, oliguria, anuria, polydypsia, vomiting and diarrhea. Urinalysis findings were proteinuria, glucosuria, hematuria, cilindruria, celluria and decrease of urinary specific gravity and crescent values of urinary gamma glutamyl transpeptidase from 24 hours after gentamicin administration until the "end of" the experiment. Azotemia was noticed on the 12th and 14th days of the study. Acute tubular nephrosis was established in the histological evaluation. Based on the results found on this study, the measurement of the urinary gamma glutamyl transpeptidase activity might be considered a sensitive indicator of renal tubular damage allowing early diagnosis of the lesion.
nephrotoxicity; urinary gamma glutamyl transpeptidase; dogs
