Serum Protein Concentration and Serum Protein Fractions in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under Human Care Using Agarose Gel Electrophoresis

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Serum protein electrophoresis (SPE) is a widely used method to determine the concentration of a serum protein fraction in human and veterinary medicine. Serum protein electrophoresis allows the separation of serum proteins into several categories based on their ability to migrate in an electrical field on different supports. Typical migration patterns could be identified in the course of different disorders such as inflammation or neoplasia. However, to be clinically useful, the interpretation of SPE data had to be performed in light of an appropriate method—and species-specific reference intervals (RIs) and for all species, including marine mammals, attention should also be given to the different living environments. In this work, we established the RIs for serum protein fractions evaluated using agarose gel electrophoresis in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under human care. These data are a new tool for health assessment in dolphins, thus, they may be useful for clinicians to better interpret laboratory data. ABSTRACT: Serum protein electrophoresis (SPE) is the most used and reliable method to determine the percentage of serum protein subfractions. The interpretation of the kinetics of total proteins and albumin and globulin fractions is receiving increased attention in wild animals, as well as in domestic animals, due to the possibility of identifying typical pathologic patterns. However, the interpretation of these data had to be performed in light of an appropriate method—and species- specific reference intervals (RIs). In marine mammals, as well as other non-domestic species, specific attention should also be given to the different environment (free ranging vs. human managed) and the associated different exposure to environmental stimuli. The aim of this report was to establish RIs for the serum protein fractions evaluated using agarose gel electrophoresis (AGE) in bottlenose dolphins under human care. Peripheral blood samples were collected from 40 bottlenose dolphins during standard veterinary procedures to evaluate their health status. Total protein concentration was determined using the biuret method while AGE was performed using an automated system. A pooled dolphin’s serum sample was used to determine the intra-assay and inter-assay imprecision of AGE. The RIs were calculated using an Excel spreadsheet with the Reference Value Advisor set of macroinstructions. The intra and inter-assay imprecisions were 1.2% and 2.5%, respectively, for albumin; 2.9% and 5.7%, respectively, for α-globulins; 3.8% and 4.0%, respectively, for β-globulins; and 3.4% and 4.8%, respectively, for γ-globulins. The total protein, albumin, α-globulin, β-globulin, and γ-globulin concentrations were 65.5 ± 5.4 g/L, 45.5 ± 4.9 g/L, 8.0 ± 1.0 g/L, 5.0 ± 2.0 g/L, and 7.0 ± 2.0 g/L, respectively. We established the RIs for the total protein and serum protein fractions using AGE in bottlenose dolphins under human care.