Canine CRP

Canine CRP Immunoassay – Test Kit

The Gentian Canine CRP Immunoassay is a Particle-Enhanced Turbidimetric Immunoassay (PETIA) for quantitative determination of canine C-reactive protein (CRP) in dog plasma and serum. The assay is designed and developed using canine specific antibodies. It is an open channel assay that can be applied on a wide range of automated clinical chemistry analysers.

The measurement of canine CRP is important in diagnosis and treatment of inflammatory disorders in dogs. The early detection of canine CRP, enables precise diagnosis and quick individualised patient decisions, resulting in reduced care time and improved patient outcomes. Measuring canine CRP is beneficial for detecting systemic inflammation, rapid diagnosis, analysis of treatment response, and monitoring disease activity.

Technical details

• Technical Specification
• Assay Principle
• Calibrator Standardisation
• Products

Canine CRP in the clinical setting

CRP is one of the major acute phase proteins produced by the hepatocytes in the liver as a response to inflammation². Basal CRP levels are very low, but rise substantially during inflammation. The acute phase response is activated very quickly and increased CRP levels can often be detected even before the onset of the clinical signs¹. CRP is secreted into the bloodstream and the concentration increases by 100-1000 times during the acute phase, starting to raise within only 6 hours after disease onset reaching maximum levels after 24-48 hours^2,3. Canine CRP can not only be analysed to detect and quantitate the degree of systemic inflammation, but also to monitor the treatment response of the patient. If the cause of inflammation is successfully removed, the serum CRP levels drop rapidly due to its half-life of about 19 hours⁴. The levels of CRP will thus directly reflect the extent of inflammation.

Compared to classical inflammation markers, such as WBC (white blood cell count) and ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate), CRP has been shown to have higher sensitivity and better monitoring abilities. This is due to the rapid reduction in CRP levels compared to WBS and ESR when the patient receives efficient treatment⁵.

Due to the fast expression of canine CRP in cases of inflammation, CRP is also often used for prognostic purposes. One example is monitoring dogs after surgery when they are especially prone to infection⁶.

Canine CRP in the laboratory setting

The Gentian Canine CRP Immunoassay is rapidly performed in only 10 minutes and can be run on all major clinical chemistry instruments. The assay has a wide measuring range from 10-300 mg/L, with a security zone up to 1000 mg/L. Healthy dogs usually have levels below 10 mg/L with the Gentian Canine CRP Immunoassay. The CRP biomarker is often included in canine health screening profiles, at the same time as being offered as a stand-alone test.

Canine CRP is, in contrast to human CRP, glycosylated at two of five subunits of the CRP protein⁷. One of the major benefits of the Gentian Canine CRP Immunoassay is the use of canine-specific CRP antibodies produced using the CRP antigen from canine origin in the immunisation process. This leads to antibodies with lower batch-to-batch variability than the CRP antibodies of human origin, as those will have varying degrees of cross-reactivity towards canine CRP⁸.

The Gentian Canine CRP Immunoassay utilises avian antibodies obtained from the egg yolk of immunised hens, the assay has therefore the advantage of providing reduced interference with mammalian rheumatoid factors, mammalian IgG antibodies, and bacterial or mammalian Fc receptors, compared to assays utilising mammalian antibodies⁹.

References 

1. Eckersall PD, Bell R. Acute phase proteins: Biomarkers of infection and inflammation in veterinary medicine. Vet J. 2010.

2. Ceron JJ et al. Acute phase proteins in dogs and cats: current knowledge and future perspectives. Vet Clin Pathol. 2005.

3. Pepys MB, Hirschfield GM. C-reactive protein: a critical update. J Clin Invest. 2003.

4. Vigushin DM et al. Metabolic and scintigraphic studies of radioiodinated human C-reactive protein in health and disease. J Clin Invest. 1993.

5. Matijatko V et al. Evidence of an acute phase response in dogs naturally infected with Babesia canis. Vet Parasitol. 2007.

6. Christensen MB et al. C-reactive protein: quantitative marker of surgical trauma and post-surgical complications in dogs: a systematic review. Acta Vet Scand. 2015.

7. Caspi D et al. Isolation and characterization of C-reactive protein from the dog. Immunology. 1984.

8. Hindenberg S et al. Evaluation of a species-specific C-reactive protein assay for the dog on the ABX Pentra 400 clinical chemistry analyzer. BMC Vet Res. 2017.

9. Larsson A et al. Chicken antibodies: taking advantage of evolution--a review. Poult Sci. 1993.

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