CYSTINE UROLITHIASIS IN A CARACAL (CARACAL CARACAL)

Abstract

In July 2009, a 14-yr-old male caracal (Caracal caracal) at the National Zoological Gardens of South Africa was found, on abdominal ultrasound, to have a single large cystolith. The cystolith was removed, and the composition was determined to be 100% cystine. Blood and urine samples were also collected from three other apparently healthy caracals at the zoo and were submitted, together with the samples from the affected animal, for analysis using gas chromatograph mass spectrometry for cystine, lysine, alanine, and ornithine levels. The cystine levels in the urine, the fractional excretion of cystine, and the normalized excretion of cystine (micromol/g of creatinine) were all higher in the affected caracal than in the healthy animals. Only a single other case of cystine urolithiasis has been previously reported in any wild felid in the literature.

Serum and urine amino acid profiles of captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)

“…In the cheetahs, the dibasic amino acid cystine, had the highest fractional excretion of all the amino acids. The fractional excretion of cystine in cheetahs appears to be similar to those we previously recorded in healthy caracals (Tordiffe et al 2012). In wild felids, it is possible that only dedicated transmembrane transport mechanisms exist for cystine.…”

“…Serum or plasma amino acid profiles of large felids have, to our knowledge, not been reported in the literature. Serum alanine, lysine, ornithine and cystine values have been reported in a small number of caracals (Caracal caracal) and in all cases the concentrations were lower than those of the cheetahs in the present study (Tordiffe et al 2012). With the exception of asparagine and threonine, the cheetah serum amino acid concentrations were also generally higher than plasma values reported in domestic cats (Heinze et al 2009).…”

“…A single metabolomic study that included plasma amino acid quantification in domestic cats, only recently appeared in the literature (Deng et al 2014). Only limited serum and urinary amino acid profiles of non-domestic felid species have, to our knowledge, been reported (Datta and Harris 1952;Tordiffe et al 2012). A number of studies have focused on the excretion of felinine and isovalthine, two sulphur-containing amino acid excreted in the urine of a few felid species (Hendriks et al 1995).…”

Cystinurie aufgrund einer SLC7A9-Missense-Mutation bei Siammischlingskatzen eines Wurfs in Deutschland

“…In humans fever, arthralgia, skin lesions and lymphadenopathy resembling lupus erythematosus (with a positive antinuclear antibody titer) may be seen with tiopronin therapy. Pharyngitis, oral ulcers, skin rash, ecchymosis, pruritis, urticaria and pemphigus-like lesions were reported (21, 39). Other adverse effects are hypersensitivity reactions, proteinuria and hematological abnormalities (like aplastic anemia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia) (18, 35, 38).…”

“…Cystinuria was one of the first “inborn errors of metabolism” in humans coined by Sir Archibald Garrod (6) and has since been described in many other species such as dogs (2, 8, 10) cats (4, 24, 25, 34), maned wolves (3), a caracal lynx (39), servals (8), ferrets (29), and mice (37). The impaired renal reabsorption of the amino acids cystine, ornithine, lysine and arginine, combined known as COLA (normally >98%), results in increased urinary concentrations of these amino acids.…”