Urinary clusterin and cystatin B as biomarkers of tubular injury in dogs following envenomation by the European adder

Diagnosing acute kidney injury remains a challenge since the established renal biomarkers, serum creatinine (sCr) and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) reflect glomerular function and not tubular injury. Sensitive tubular markers such as urinary clusterin (uClust) and cystatin B (uCysB) have been proposed to detect AKI at an earlier stage. Since envenomation by the European adder (Vipera berus berus) could serve as a spontaneous disease model of AKI we investigated these new biomarkers in affected dogs. Concentrations of uClust and uCysB as well as sCr and SDMA were analyzed retrospectively in stored samples from 26 dogs with snake envenomation and 13 healthy controls. Higher concentrations of uClust (P <0.012) and uCysB (P <0.001) were observed in the snake-envenomed group. Normalization of uClust and uCysB to urinary creatinine did not alter the results. No differences were observed in sCr and SDMA between the snake-envenomed group and the healthy control group. Spearman rank correlation analysis revealed a strong association of uClust with uCysB in the snake-envenomed dogs (r = 0.75 P <0.001) but not in the healthy controls. The high percentage of snake-envenomed dogs with increased uClust and uCysB concentrations in the absence of increased sCr and SDMA suggests renal tubular injury in the affected dogs. Larger prospective case-controlled studies are warranted to evaluate the clinical utility and prognostic value of these biomarkers.Peer reviewe

Comparison of IDEXX SediVue Dx® urine sediment analyzer to manual microscopy for detection of casts in canine urine

BackgroundDetection of urinary casts is difficult due to their intermittent presence and deterioration in urine samples.ObjectiveTo compare the performance of the IDEXX SediVue Dx® Urine Sediment Analyzer (SediVue) with manual microscopy for the detection of urinary casts. We hypothesized that the SediVue analyzer would perform similarly to manual microscopy in cast detection.AnimalsFour hundred forty-three samples from 420 dogs from a hospital population.MethodsThis is a prospective, cross-sectional study. For SediVue analysis (software version [SW] 1.0.1.3), uncentrifuged urine was pipetted into a disposable cartridge. Seventy images were captured and processed by an onboard algorithm. For manual microscopy, urine was centrifuged to obtain sediment. Any cast identified by either method was considered a positive result (&gt;0/low-power field [LPF]). SediVue images were evaluated if casts were detected by either methodology. A revised sensitivity and specificity were calculated after image review and when using a threshold of &gt;1 cast/LPF.ResultsThe sensitivity of the SediVue analysis for the detection of urinary casts was 53.7% (43.85%-63.35%), and specificity was 86.0% (81.78%-89.51%). After image review, the revised sensitivity/specificity was 52.0% (42.89%-61.02%) and 90.6% (86.81%-93.54%), respectively. When using a more clinically relevant threshold of &gt;1/LPF, the sensitivity was 52.6% (35.82%-69.02%) and specificity was 99.3% (97.85%-99.85%).Conclusions and clinical importanceThe SediVue provides moderate agreement to manual methodology for detection of casts in urine

Relationship between lean body mass and serum renal biomarkers in healthy dogs

Background: Symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) is an accurate and precise biomarker for estimating glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in humans and cats. Serum creatinine (sCr) also correlates with GFR, but has limitations as a biomarker of renal function because nonrenal factors can influence its concentration. Hypothesis: Differences in lean body mass (LBM) influence sCr, but not serum SDMA concentrations. Animals: Forty-one healthy Beagles, mean age 9.9 years (range: 3.1–14.8 years), were studied over a 6 month period. Methods: Serum biomarkers of renal function were measured prospectively at baseline, and 1, 3, and 6 months. SDMA concentrations were measured by liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy and sCr concentrations by enzymatic colorimetry. Body composition was determined by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. Results: LBM (P females; P = .02). Mature adult dogs (<8 years) had greater LBM compared with geriatric dogs (≥8 years; P < .001). Conclusion and Clinical Importance: sCr concentrations, but not SDMA concentrations, are influenced by LBM, which limits sCr utility as a biomarker for monitoring renal function in dogs with decreased LBM. Reductions in LBM can lower sCr concentration and overestimate GFR. SDMA concentrations, but not sCr concentrations were influenced by time on food. SDMA could have clinical advantages over sCr in monitoring response to nutritional interventions.Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article can be found at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/%28ISSN%291939-1676Keywords: Creatinine, Canine, Urea nitrogen, Symmetric dimethylarginin

A Comparative Study of Traditional Authentication and Authorization Methods with Block Chain Technology for Egovernance Services

With the increase in communication channels between various stakeholders in eGovernance scenario,&nbsp;offering secure e-Services by means of Authentication and Authorization became a crucial part.&nbsp; The multi factor authentication (MF) provides better protection effectively than the age old password based authentication. Governments are making efforts to establish multi factor&nbsp;authentication&nbsp;without&nbsp;comprising&nbsp;on provisioning the e-services. But there are some drawbacks in this centralised mode of authentication. In this paper,&nbsp;an exploratory comparative study of usability of blockchain technologies in eGovernance by studying National and International scenarios and the methods to provide e-services. Secondary data study will be conducted for studying the existing Authentication and Authorization of the user in e-services. The researcher is considering the factors like centralisation, scalability, trust factors while&nbsp;comparing&nbsp;various MF technologies and proposing usage of blockchain technology in eGovernance services by taking a case study of eHealth services