Acute phase proteins (APP) are serum proteins whose stimulus for the synthesis happens in a quick and intense manner in response to tissue injury. Those proteins allow the diagnosis of inflammatory process in animals with bone marrow depression and, also, they are useful in the follow up of tissue resolution of traumas or inflammation, as well as in the evaluation of the organic response of the treatment. As leukopenia is observed in the initial stage of the canine parvovirus infection, the dosage of APP can allow the evaluation of the inflammatory process under these conditions. According to these hypothesis, serum APP levels (haptoglobin, ceruloplasm and a-acid-glycoprotein) in 11 healthy dogs and 11 leukopenic dogs with haemorrhagic gastroenteritis, clinically suspected of canine parvovirus infection, were measured. There was a significant difference, with confidence interval of 99% (P <0.01) for the haptoglobin (p <0.0064) and the acid alpha-glycoprotein (p <0.0042) and 95% (P <0.05) of confidence for the ceruloplasmin (p <0.0478) when compared to the control group. In conclusion, dogs with haemorrhagic gastroenteritis during the leukopenic phase showed high serum levels of haptoglobin, ceruloplasmin and alpha-acid-glycoprotein.
acute phase protein; canine parvovirus; dogs; haptoglobin; ceruplasmin; alpha-acid-glycoprotein
