title: Myocardial taurine concentrations in cats with cardiac disease and in healthy cats fed taurine-modified diets.
abstract: Myocardial taurine concentrations were measured in cats with cardiac disease and in healthy cats fed diets with various concentrations of taurine. Group 1 was composed of 26 cats with 3 categories of naturally developing cardiac disease: dilatative cardiomyopathy (group 1A), 10 cats; hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (group 1B), 9 cats; and volume overload (group 1C), 7 cats. These cats had been fed various commercial diets. Group 2 was composed of 40 healthy cats that had been fed diets varying in taurine concentration (0 to 1% taurine) for at least 2 years. Mean myocardial taurine concentrations did not differ significantly between group-1 cats with dilatative cardiomyopathy and those with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or volume overload. Cats in group 1A had a mean myocardial taurine concentration 3 times higher than healthy cats fed a taurine-free diet (P less than 0.002). Mean myocardial taurine concentrations did not differ significantly between group-1A cats and healthy cats fed a diet containing 0.02% taurine; group-1A cats had significantly lower mean myocardial taurine concentrations than did healthy cats fed a synthetic diet containing 0.05 or 1.0% taurine (P less than 0.001). Acute oral administration of taurine in 5 group-1A cats appeared to increase mean myocardial taurine concentrations, compared with similar cats not given taurine during treatment for cardiac failure. In group-2 cats, mean myocardial taurine concentrations increased directly with percentage of dietary taurine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Animal Medical Center, New York, NY 10021.
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Fox
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Sturman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000378:metabolism / Q000662:veterinary; D002312:Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic / Q000378:metabolism / Q000662:veterinary; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000378:metabolism*; D002415:Cats; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D009206:Myocardium / Q000737:chemistry*; D013654:Taurine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D013654:Taurine