Measuring intestinal dysbiosis in cats to diagnose and monitor chronic enteropathy

Chronic enteropathy (CE), a common syndrome in cats, is characterized by clinical signs such as weight loss, vomiting, diarrhea, and/or anorexia for more than 3 weeks. In cats, EC is commonly classified as food-sensitive, steroid-sensitive (formerly inflammatory bowel disease, IBD) or alimentary small cell lymphoma (SCL). Although the etiopathogenesis of EC remains unclear, this condition is considered multifactorial and has underlying genetic, environmental as well as gut microbiome factors. In fact, intestinal dysbiosis has been associated with various diseases in humans, dogs, and cats. Studies conducted by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, f...