| dc.description.abstract | In horses, intestinal microbiota imbalance (dysbiosis) is a common cause of colic, capable of triggering an inflammatory response (sepsis), which, if not controlled, can progress to organ dysfunction, resulting in severe laminitis and even death. Lithothamnium spp. is a calcareous kelp, which has demonstrated anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in studies in laboratory animals and humans. With the hypothesis that the previous ingestion of this alga reduces and delays such consequences, the objective was to evaluate the effects of supplementation with Lithothamnium muelleri on the systemic inflammatory response, on organic dysfunction and on the hoof in horses submitted to the oligofructose laminitis model. Twelve healthy horses were used, divided into control and treated groups. The treated group received Lithothamnium muelleri (100 mg / kg PO BID) for six days before and in the 36 hours after induction of dysbiosis and laminitis due to oligofructose overload (1g / kg PO for 3 days; and induction with 10g / kg PO in the fourth day). The animals were evaluated clinically and laboratory before and at times 0, 6, 12, 18 and 24 hours after induction. Hoof biopsies were performed at times 0, 12 and 36 hours after induction, for histological evaluation and immunostaining of calprotectin (CP +). The parametric data were evaluated to ANOVA in randomized blocks, followed by the Tukey and Student's T tests. Nonparametric data were analyzed using the Friedman test, followed by the Dunn’s and Mann-Whitney tests. Both groups had systemic inflammation, organ dysfunction and consequent laminitis. However, in the treated group, the changes occurred more mildly and later. In conclusion, the previous ingestion of L. muelleri was able to alleviate and delay the onset of septic conditions, organ dysfunction and laminitis in horses submitted to an oligofructose overload model. Although preliminary, the findings demonstrate the potential of oral supplementation with Lithothamnium muelleri to control the systemic inflammatory response to intestinal dysbiosis in horses. | |
