RESPIRATORY METABOLITES IN BRONCHOALVEOLAR LAVAGE FLUID (BALF) AND EXHALED BREATH CONDENSATE (EBC) OF HEALTHY HORSES AND HORSES AFFECTED BY EQUINE ASTHMA

Purpose of the work - About 14% of adult/old horses naturally develop an asthma-like disease known as equine asthma1. Metabolomics is gaining popularity in human and veterinary medicine2,3. The metabolomic profile of exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and tracheal wash (TW) was investi- gated in horses4. In this study, we investigated the metabolomic profile of EBC and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in healthy and asthma-affected horses. Materials and used methods - On the basis of clinical, endoscopic findings and BALF cytology, 6 horses were included in asthma group (Group A), 6 horses were included in control group (Group C). BALF and EBC samples were collected as described previously4,5] and stored at -80°C until analy- sis by 1H-NMR6. The F-test was used for statistical analysis. Results - 1H-NMR identified 12 metabolites in BALF: formate, lactate, myo-inositol, glycerol, glycine, taurine, creatine, succinate, pyruvate, acetate, ethanol and isopropanol. Metabolites in EBC includ- ed methanol, ethanol, formate, trimethylamine, acetone, acetate and lactate. Among respiratory metabo- lites, myo-inositol, formate, glycerol and isopropanol in BALF, methanol and ethanol in EBC differed between groups (p<0.05). Conclusions - The analysis of BALF performed in this study completes the metabolomic profile of respiratory system4 in healthy and asthma-affected horses. In BALF, Group A had lower levels of myo- inositol, a metabolite that promotes maturation of pulmonary surfactant and supports respiratory func- tion7. In EBC, higher methanol was found in Group A, indicating an active inflammatory status4,8. Con- sidering our results, metabolomics has a great potential to better explain the pathophysiology of equine asthma, allowing researchers to adopt novel diagnostics and therapeutic strategies to treat the disease.