INVESTIGATIONS INTO HYPERLIPIDEMIA AND ITS POSSIBLE ...

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A series of subsequent publications from the late 1970s until recently, have
investigated canine lipoprotein profiles in association with or in response to obesity, 11,12
diet change, 13,14 primary disorders of lipid metabolism, 15-17 experimentally induced
pancreatitis, 18-20 and other (mainly endocrine) diseases. 21 These studies have used similar
methodologies to previous studies (i.e., ultracentrifugation combined with
electrophoresis), and provide information for both healthy dogs (which were used as
controls) and dogs with several spontaneous or experimentally induced diseases. The
information on lipoproteins in healthy dogs is similar to that reported by Solyom and
colleagues and Mahley and colleagues in the 1970s. However, information on specific
lipoprotein profile patterns associated with certain diseases or conditions has been new
for these studies. For example, Whitney and colleagues 17
reported that idiopathic
hypertriglyceridemia in Miniature Schnauzers is mainly characterized by increases in
serum VLDL concentrations, with or without an increase in chylomicrons. Jeusette and
colleagues 12 reported that obesity results in increased serum cholesterol and triglyceride
concentrations in all lipoprotein fractions, and that appropriate dietary modification
resulted in improvement of these concentrations. The studies investigating the effect of
experimental pancreatitis on plasma lipids and lipoprotein concentrations, 18-20 are hard to
compare because different methods of induction of pancreatitis were used, and the
resulting pancreatic inflammation differed in severity between studies. However, some
common trends can be identified. Experimental induction of pancreatitis did not
generally lead to clinically significant changes in serum triglyceride or cholesterol
concentrations. With regard to lipoproteins, a trend towards an increase in serum LDL