For many horse owners, laminitis is one of the worst diseases a horse can get. Triggers for the condition are varied; laminitis can occur on its own or it can be triggered by another serious issue, like colic or a retained placenta–which are emergencies in themselves. To add insult to injury, supporting-limb laminitis can devastate a horse that is already favoring another leg.
Supporting limb laminitis is extremely painful and is generally a complication of orthopedic injuries and infections. Horses with the condition are often euthanized.
A horse that is experiencing supporting limb laminitis has an increase in cytokine production that promotes inflammation. Drs. Lynne Cassimeris, Julie Engiles and Hannah Galantino-Homer sought to locate the specific cells in the immune system that secrete cytokines; it's hoped that this discovery would help them find therapeutic interventions for the disease.
The research team focused on the proinflammatory Interleukin-17A (IL-17A) pathway. IL-17A is generally activated when the horse experiences a cutaneous wound or pathological skin condition; this response is similar to how humans react to a wound or skin disease—specifically psoriasis.
To test their hypothesis, the team used lamellar tissue from Thoroughbreds that had been euthanized because of naturally occurring standing limb laminitis. They compared these samples to euthanized horses that didn't have laminitis.
The scientists found IL-17A and the target genes in the tissue of laminitic horses, especially when compared to the tissue of non-laminitic horses. They report that finding a way to block the activation of IL-17A could lead to the development of a therapeutic treatment for supporting limb laminitis.
The team notes that this will not be as simple as applying human therapies to horses, as successful psoriasis treatments in humans use monoclonal antibodies to block IL-17A activation. These antibodies may not work in horses for a variety of reasons, including that they may not bind to the equine receptor. In addition, this treatment would most likely be cost prohibitive.
With more research, local inhibition of the IL-17A expression may be possible.
Read the full study here.
Read more at HorseTalk.
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