Upregulation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 in dogs with chronic inflammatory enteropathies

Abstract

Background: In inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in humans, phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (pSTAT3) is upregulated in mucosal epithelial cells and correlates with clinical severity. Hypothesis/Objective: To investigate the expression pattern of pSTAT3 in the mucosa of dogs with chronic inflammatory enteropathy (CIE) and explore correlations between its expression and clinical and histopathological severity scoring. Animals: Twenty-eight canine CIE patients grouped into food-responsive enteropathy (FRE; 9), steroid-responsive enteropathy (SRE; 10), and protein-losing enteropathy (PLE; 9). Ten healthy beagle dogs served as controls (CO). Methods: Retrospective case control study. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect pSTAT3 in canine duodenal mucosa samples. Results: Compared to CO, SRE (P