Pathomorphological evaluation of hepatobiliary lesions in dogs and cats of Ankara region

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate pathological disorders of the hepatobiliary system in dogs and cats in Ankara using pathomorphological methods, and to determine the types and frequency of the observed lesions. Furthermore, we aimed to evaluate hepatic reparation as a reaction of the liver to injury with different hepatobiliary lesions using immunohistochemical methods. Livers obtained from 56 cats and 74 dogs submitted for post-mortem investigation were examined macroscopically and microscopically. Samples with hepatic fibrosis were stained immunohistochemically with an α-SMA antibody. Lesions were found in 98% of the livers of the examined dogs and cats. The most common histopathological diagnoses were hepatitis (39.28%), hepatocellular lipidosis (16.07%), and cholangitis/cholangiohepatitis (14.28%) in cats. In dogs they were hepatitis (28.38%), passive congestion (25.68%) and proliferative lesions (21.62%). For some hepatobiliary lesions, breed, age and gender predispositions were observed. Immunohistochemically, the α-SMA antibody positively stained parenchymal, portal and septal myofibroblasts. A positive correlation was verified between immunohistochemical α-SMA scores and histochemical fibrosis scores. This is the first study in Turkey documenting both the incidence of hepatobiliary lesions among feline and canine species, and their pathomorphological features. In terms of reparation, the major role of the hepatic myofibroblasts in liver fibrosis was observed. There were variations in the intensity and location of positively stained cells according to the type of lesion. The conclusion of this research indicates the need to pay attention to certain hepatic lesions in dogs and cats, and provides a reference standard for further clinical and histopathological studies.