Evaluation of anti-desmoglein-2 antibodies and cardiac biomarkers in Boxer dogs with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.

INTRODUCTION/

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether circulating anti-desmoglein-2 antibodies distinguish Boxer dogs with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy from screened controls and assess the diagnostic utility of anti-desmoglein-2, cardiac troponin I (cTnI), high-sensitivity cTnI (HS-cTnI), and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) relative to arrhythmia burden.

ANIMALS, MATERIALS AND

METHODS

This prospective cross-sectional study included 52 Boxer dogs (28 arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy-affected and 24 screened controls). Diagnosis was based on Holter monitoring (>300 ventricular premature complexes [VPCs]/24 h or documented ventricular tachycardia). Anti-desmoglein-2 antibodies, cTnI, HS-cTnI, and NT-proBNP were measured. Receiver operating characteristic analysis and correlations with VPC burden were performed.

RESULTS

Anti-desmoglein-2 antibody concentrations did not differ between groups by either method (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay: P=0.687; Western blot: P=0.293). Receiver-operating characteristic analysis showed poor discriminatory ability for anti-desmoglein-2 (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay: area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] = 0.534, P=0.693; Western blot: AUC = 0.600, P=0.295). In contrast, cutoffs for NT-proBNP (1530 pmol/L, AUC = 0.856), HS-cTnI (0.21 ng/mL, AUC = 0.805), and cTnI (0.08 ng/mL, AUC = 0.795) all demonstrated good performance in differentiating groups (P<0.001) and showed positive correlations with VPCs (P≤0.001) for NT-proBNP (r = 0.60), HS-cTnI (r = 0.549), and cTnI (r = 0.471).

LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional design and lack of pedigree data may have limited detection of subclinical disease. Disease stage and therapy may also have influenced biomarker concentrations.

CONCLUSIONS

Anti-desmoglein-2 antibody lacked diagnostic value for arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy in Boxer dogs, whereas NT-proBNP, cTnI, and HS-cTnI showed promise as reliable clinical biomarkers.