R. Cocco

Functional foods in pet nutrition: Focus on dogs and cats

Functional foods provide health benefits if they are consumed on a regular basis as part of a varied diet. In this review, we discuss the availability and role of functional foods in pet nutrition with a focus on dogs and cats. Indeed, functional foods modify gastrointestinal physiology, promote changes in biochemical parameters, improve brain functions and may reduce or minimize the risk of developing specific pathologies. This evidence derives largely from clinical studies while only limited evidence is available from studies in dogs and cats. Therefore, functional food consumption should be further investigated in pet nutrition to understand how dietary interventions can be used for disease prevention and treatment.

Effects in dogs with behavioural disorders of a commercial nutraceutical diet on stress and neuroendocrine parameters

The well-being of dogs can be affected by changes in human lifestyle, eating habits and increased stressors that lead to behavioural disorders including fear, hyperactivity and anxiety, followed by negative affective moods and poor welfare. This randomised, controlled clinical evaluation involved 69 dogs, 38 males and 31 females, of different breeds, with behavioural disorders related to anxiety and chronic stress. They were fed a control diet or a nutraceutical diet (ND group) for 45 days. Neuroendocrine (serotonin, dopamine, β-endorphins, noradrenaline and cortisol) and stress (derivatives of reactive oxygen metabolites (dROMs) and biological antioxidant potential (BAP)) parameters related to behavioural disorders were evaluated at the beginning and end of the study period. Results showed a significant increase in serotonin, dopamine and β-endorphins plasma concentrations (*P<0.05, *P<0.05 and **P<0.01, respectively) and a significant decrease in noradrenaline and cortisol plasma concentrations in the ND group (*P<0.05). dROMs significantly decreased in the ND group (*P<0.05) while BAP was not affected. This study demonstrated for the first time that a specific diet significantly and positively affected neuroendocrine parameters and dROMs. These results open significant perspectives concerning the use of diet and nutraceuticals in the treatment of behavioural disorders.

Seroprevalence of Bartonella henselae in Dogs and Cats in Sassari

Pinna Parpaglia, M.L., Masu, G., Masala, G., Porcu, R., Zobba, R., Pintori, G. and Cocco, R., 2007. Veterinary Research Communications, 31(Suppl. 1), 317–320

Clinical efficacy of nutraceutical diet for cats with clinical signs of cutaneus adverse food reaction (CAFR)

Food allergies and food intolerances are clinically difficult to discriminate. Most often, along with cutaneous adverse food reactions or CAFR, they are classified as adverse food reactions, whose causes are numerous, including toxic compounds. Eighteen indoor-housed domestic cats with evident clinical symptoms related to CAFR (drooling, back and neck intense itching, neck eczema, chronic conjunctivitis and stomatitis) involving skin lesions were studied. Cytological evaluations of ear, skin and gingival swabs revealed an increased turnover of keratinocytes while the oxytetracycline ELISA determination showed an unexpected high amount of oxytetracycline in all cats at the first visit. All cats were then randomly assigned to receive a standard (SD group) or a nutraceutical diet (ND group) for 60 days. In the ND group a significant reduction of the mean serum concentration of oxytetracycline, pruritus intensity and skin lesion severity (**p<0.01, ***p<0.001, and ***p<0.001, respectively) was observed after 60 days, and associated with a significant improvement in the clinical picture. Although a direct correlation between oxytetracycline presence within cat sera and CAFR-related symptoms has never been described, this study highlights the benefit of a specific nutraceutical diet supplementation in improving clinical symptoms and skin lesions in cats with CARF.

Isolation and characterization of Bartonella strains in cats in Italy.

Bartonella henselae and Bartonella clarridgeiae were isolated in two cats in Sardinia, Italy. Infection by B. clarridgeiae was characterized by fever and submandibular lymph nodes enlargement while B. henselae infection was asymptomatic. This is the first report of B. clarridgeiae in a cat in Italy and the first isolation of B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae in Sardinia.

A nutraceutical diet based on Lespedeza spp., Vaccinium macrocarpon and Taraxacum officinale improves spontaneous feline chronic kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease is characterized by structural and/or functional impairment of one or both kidneys persisting for more than 3 months. In cats, chronic kidney disease can frequently occur in animals aged over 9 years with an incidence of approximately 10%. Thirty‐four client‐owned, neutered cats, suffering from stage II‐III chronic kidney disease and diagnosed according to the International Renal Interest Society guidelines were randomly assigned to receive either a control diet (n = 17) or a nutraceutical diet (ND; n = 17) for 90 days. Both diets were commercialized for management of CKD symptoms. The diets were identical except that the ND contained tablets that consisted of 60–80% hydrolysed proteins, 20–40% minerals and active substances, that are, Lespedeza spp. 0.0588%, Vaccinium macrocarpom 0.0371%, and Taraxacum officinale 0.0231%. No adverse effects were reported during this study. Both diets resulted in an improvement in CKD symptoms. After a 90‐day evaluation, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, total proteins, and aspartate aminotransferase significantly decreased in cats that received the ND. A significant decrease was also observed in urine turbidity score, color score, and total proteins in cats that received the ND. We have found that a ND based on Lespedeza spp., Vaccinium macrocarpon, and Taraxacum officinale improves key indicators of renal failure in cats affected by chronic kidney disease.

Studies of modern Italian dog populations reveal multiple patterns for domestic breed evolution

Abstract Through thousands of years of breeding and strong human selection, the dog (Canis lupus familiaris) exists today within hundreds of closed populations throughout the world, each with defined phenotypes. A singular geographic region with broad diversity in dog breeds presents an interesting opportunity to observe potential mechanisms of breed formation. Italy claims 14 internationally recognized dog breeds, with numerous additional local varieties. To determine the relationship among Italian dog populations, we integrated genetic data from 263 dogs representing 23 closed dog populations from Italy, seven Apennine gray wolves, and an established dataset of 161 globally recognized dog breeds, applying multiple genetic methods to characterize the modes by which breeds are formed within a single geographic region. Our consideration of each of five genetic analyses reveals a series of development events that mirror historical modes of breed formation, but with variations unique to the codevelopment of early dog and human populations. Using 142,840 genome‐wide SNPs and a dataset of 1,609 canines, representing 182 breeds and 16 wild canids, we identified breed development routes for the Italian breeds that included divergence from common populations for a specific purpose, admixture of regional stock with that from other regions, and isolated selection of local stock with specific attributes.

Validation of a serological test for the diagnosis of canine rickettsial disease.

Canine vector borne diseases include a variety of illnesses affecting domestic dogs worldwide. Clinical abnormalities are often nonspecific during rickettsial infections, and coinfections caused by other tick-transmitted agents may be common. The aim of this study was to validate a differential serological assay for the diagnosis of rickettsial infections by the indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test. Sensitivity (DSe), specificity (Dsp), accuracy (Acc), positive and negative predictive values (PPV and NPV), positive and negative likelihood ratios (LR+ and LR-), Cohens Kappa agreement, Youdens J index and odds values were calculated in order to define the positive and negative post-test probability and to establish a link between clinical signs compatible with a rickettsial infections and serological confirmation.