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September 2017 THE HORSE TheHorse.com
AMY
K.
DRAGOO
STACEY OKE, DVM, MSC
Vets are using serum amyloid A,
a naturally produced protein,
to detect equine infections
and monitor treatment
INFECTION
O
ur horses have many blood components capable of alerting our
veterinarians about everything from dehydration status to tissue
damage. Scientists have been on the search for substances that act
as reliable biomarkers for various problems; these could help remove
some of the guesswork when making a diagnosis. Enter serum amyloid A
(SAA), a protein the liver produces in the face of inflammation that's chang-
ing the way veterinarians detect infections in horses.
Getting a Read on
