Characterization of an experimental model of feline uveitis

MARÍA JOSÉ DEL SOLE; PABLO HORACIO SANDE; ANTONIO EDUARDO FELIPE; DIEGO CARLOS FERNANDEZ; MARCELO ALFREDO ABA; RUTH ESTELA ROSENSTEIN

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY RESEARCH

American Veterinary Medical Association

Año: 2008 vol. 69 p. 1487 - 1495

0002-9645

Objective — The aim of the present study was to characterize an experimental model of uveitis in cats induced by a single intravitreal injection of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Animals — Seven young European short-hair male cats in good physical and ophthalmologic health. Pocedure — LPS was intravitreally injected into one eye of male healthy cats, while the contralateral eye was injected with vehicle. The inflammatory response was evaluated along a 45 day-period post-injection in terms of: (i) clinical evaluation (with a score index based on clinical signs), (ii) the integrity of the blood aqueous barrier (protein and cell content in samples of aqueous humor), (iii) functional analysis (by electroretinography), and (iv) retinal histopathology. Results — In LPS- treated eyes, several clinical signs were observed until day 45 post-injection. Intraocular pressure was significantly lower in LPS- than in vehicle-injected eyes, while protein concentration and the number of infiltrating cells were significantly higher in LPS- than in vehicle-injected eyes. Average amplitudes of scotopic ERG a- and b-waves were significantly reduced in eyes injected with LPS. At 45 days post-injection, histological alterations of LPS were observed in photoreceptors and middle retina. Conclusion and Clinical Relevance — The present results indicate that a single injection of LPS provoked clinical, biochemical, functional and histological alterations which reproduce main features of feline uveitis. Thus, this model could constitute a useful tool for developing new therapeutic strategies for uveitis treatment in cats.