In the area of ​​chronic intestinal diseases there is a new dysbiosis index dog from the USA

Below is a translated, recent article from Texas A&M University:

TEXAS A&M RESEARCHERS DEVELOP NEW METHOD FOR DETECTING CHRONIC GI DISEASE IN DOGS

Reporting by Courtney Price, VMBS Communications

A research team led by the Gastrointestinal Laboratory (GI Laboratory) at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) has validated a new diagnostic index that will help veterinarians assess chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction in dogs in the future could be the key to diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal diseases.

In a recent article published in the journal Animals, GI Lab researchers tested their Dysbiosis Index (DI) on the microbiomes of 296 dogs and demonstrated that their index is a valid diagnostic tool for distinguishing between acute and chronic GI dysfunction and detecting it of non-GI diseases.

The DI is now licensed by Texas A&M and IDEXX Laboratories and is offered through GI Laboratory and IDEXX.

“We are pleased to offer clinicians a rapid, affordable and reliable test to assess the health of the gut microbiome in dogs,” said Dr. Chi-Hsuan Sung, first author of the article and member of the GI Lab team.

The DI works by identifying dysbiosis - the loss of good, healthy bacteria in the gut microbiome - by tracking levels of different bacteria over time.

"The dysbiosis index can accurately predict overall changes in the microbiome," says Dr. Jan Suchodolski, deputy research director of the GI laboratory. "This allows us to define what is normal and abnormal for gut microbiome health so we can identify when a patient's intestinal system has drifted away from the norm."

Since more than 10% of all new veterinary visits are due to gastrointestinal disorders in dogs and cats, knowing when a patient's microbiome deviates from normal helps veterinarians decide whether the condition is acute or acute chronic dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, which requires different treatment methods.

Defining what is normal
"One of the biggest challenges in microbiome research is defining what is normal and what is abnormal," says Suchodolski.

"All too often, researchers use techniques and technologies that are not reproducible, meaning other researchers are unable to repeat their process," he said. "For example, genome sequencing, which involves mapping an organism's DNA, is a popular tool that helps scientists figure out what types of bacteria belong to the microbiome. But that is more of a discovery tool. When two researchers sequence the same samples, you may get different results. It is not accurate enough to be used as a diagnostic tool.

Being able to tell the difference between normal and abnormal bacteria can improve the health of the microbiome.

But this is more of a discovery tool. When two researchers sequence the same samples, they can get different results. It is not accurate enough to be used as a diagnostic tool.

The ability to distinguish between normal and abnormal bacteria can make a big difference when veterinarians are trying to decide whether a patient has acute or chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction.

“You can think of the microbiome as a landscape that you see when you look out the window,” says Suchodolski. "Acute gastrointestinal dysfunction is like a storm that comes through and knocks down a few trees, but the landscape recovers. However, chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction is much more destructive and leads to permanent changes."

"This index will help experts better assess the nature of a patient's gastrointestinal tract dysfunction so they can select the appropriate treatments and set expectations for the patient's caregivers."

Dr.
Jan Suchodolski Chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction, which affects approximately 2% of dogs, also requires a completely different clinical treatment approach.

"When a patient develops chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction, there are permanent changes in the gastrointestinal tract," he says. "The disease is likely to persist for many years or even lifelong. Instead of curing it, we are looking for ways to control the disease through diet and other means.

"Using this index, experts can better assess what type of gastrointestinal dysfunction a patient has so they can select the right treatments and set expectations.

The GI lab was able to validate the DI thanks in part to the Purina PetCare Research Excellence Fund, a five-year partnership with Nestlé Purina PetCare Global Research to support diagnostic and interventional research on the gut microbiome.

“We are grateful to Purina PetCare for partnering with us to improve patients’ lives in new ways,” said Suchodolski. “It is important for GI Lab researchers to have research partners who share our values.”

view in the future

Now that GI Lab researchers have validated their index, there are several directions the lab plans to explore further. This includes using the DI as a means of screening donors for fecal microbiota transplantation, a procedure in which feces from a healthy patient are placed into the intestines of a patient with GI disease to repopulate the good bacteria.

"Fecal transplants are a novel procedure that is still under development in veterinary medicine. In the future, we want to be sure that the donors are in a normal state of microbiome health, and the index can help with this," said Suchodolski.

The team is also working on developing similar indices that will further improve the diagnosis of gastrointestinal diseases by veterinarians and intestinal specialists.

“In the long term, we would like to develop instruments that help with the early detection of GI diseases,” says Suchodolski. "For now, the index helps us differentiate between chronic and acute diseases, but ultimately we also want to identify markers for early detection."

Given the prevalence of gastrointestinal disease in dogs, the researchers say this work will help carry veterinary medicine into the future.

(C) https://vetmed.tamu.edu/gilab/service/assays/canine-microbiota-dysbiosis-index/

Summary from us for you

1. 🐕 New Canine Diagnostic Index : Researchers at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine have developed a Canine Dysbiosis Index (DI) to assess chronic gastrointestinal dysfunction in dogs.
2. 🧪 Validation by study : The Dysbiosis Index Dog was tested on 296 dogs and has proven to be an effective tool for distinguishing between acute and chronic GI dysfunction.
3. 💡 Innovation in diagnostics : The Dysbiosis Index Dog detects dysbiosis by monitoring various bacteria in the intestinal microbiome and can distinguish normal from abnormal conditions.
4. 🏥 Clinical relevance : More than 10% of veterinary visits concern gastrointestinal diseases. The Dysbiosis Index Dog helps you decide whether it is an acute or chronic disorder.
5. 🔬 Research Challenges : The Dog Dysbiosis Index addresses the problem of reproducibility in microbiome research and provides a more accurate diagnostic method than traditional genome sequencing.
6. 🚑 Applications and future outlook : The Dysbiosis Index Dog will be used in veterinary medicine in the future, including in the preparation of fecal microbiota transplants.
7. 🤝 Support and partnership : The development of the Dysbiosis Index Dog was made possible through the partnership with Nestlé Purina PetCare and their research fund.

Summary : The Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine has developed a Dysbiosis Index Dog for the diagnosis and treatment of chronic GI diseases in dogs, providing a more precise and reproducible method compared to traditional diagnostic tools.

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The Dysbiosis Index Dog enables more precise treatment of intestinal diseases. The use of the Dysbiosis Index Dog improves the quality of life of many dogs. The Dog Dysbiosis Index is based on extensive research. Thanks to the Dog Dysbiosis Index, veterinarians can make more informed decisions. The Dysbiosis Index Dog will revolutionize the diagnosis of GI diseases.