Ma. Mcmichael et al., Plasma homocysteine, B vitamins, and amino acid concentrations in cats with cardiomyopathy and arterial thromboembolism, J VET INT M, 14(5), 2000, pp. 507-512
Arterial thromboembolism (ATE) is a common complication of cats with cardio
myopathy (CM), but little is known about the pathophysiology of ATE. In peo
ple, high plasma concentrations of homocysteine and low B vitamin concentra
tions are risk factors for peripheral vascular disease. In addition, low pl
asma arginine concentrations have been linked to endothelial dysfunction. T
he purpose of this study was to compare concentrations of homocysteine, B v
itamins, and amino acids in plasma of normal cats to those of cats with CM
and ATE. Plasma concentrations of homocysteine, vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12,
folate, and amino acids were measured in 29 healthy cats, 27 cats with CM a
lone, and 28 cats with both CM and ATE. No differences were found between g
roups in homocysteine or folate. Mean vitamin B-12 concentration (mean +/-
standard deviation) was lower in cats with ATE (866 +/- 367 pg/mL) and cars
with CM (939 +/- 389 pg/mL) compared with healthy controls (1,650 +/- 700
pg/mL; P <.001). Mean vitamin B-12 concentration was lower in cats with ATE
(3,247 +/- 1,215 pmol/ml) and cats with CM (3,200 +/- 906 pmol/ml) compare
d with healthy control animals (4,380 +/- 1,302 pmol/ml; P = .005). Plasma
arginine concentrations were lower in cats with ATE (75 +/- 33 nmol/mL) com
pared with cats with CM (106 +/- 25 nmol/mL) and healthy control animals (9
6 +/- 25 nmol/ mL; P <.001). Vitamin B-12 concentration was significantly c
orrelated with left atrial size. We interpret the results of this study to
suggest that vitamin B-12 and arginine may play a role in CM and ATE of cat
s.