2017 ACVIM Forum Research Abstract Program

A large number of genes were found to be differentially expressed in dogs with chronic hepatitis compared to healthy control dogs and some of these genes may potentially be related to the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis. Further study of this dataset and confirmatory testing of a subset of the identified genes with quantitative RT-PCR might provide further insights into the pathogenesis of canine hepatic fibrosis. Hypovitaminosis D has been identified in dogs with sepsis. In people, calcitriol reverses the immunopathology during sepsis, yet little is known about the effects of calcitriol on innate immune function in the dog. We hypothesized that calcitriol will reduce canine leukocyte TNF production, increase IL-10 production, augment PMN phagocytosis and reduce TLR4 expression.