Diagnostic Utility of Pentraxin-3 Compared With N-terminal-prohormone of B-Type Natriuretic Peptide (Nt-probnp) and Tumour Necrosis Factor-α (Tnf-α) in Dogs With Degenerative Mitral Valve Disease

Abstract Pentraxin-3 (PTX3) is a novel biomarker of interest in cardiovascular disease and injury. Despite this, there is limited literature on PTX3 as a veterinary biomarker. Another ubiquitous inflammatory marker, tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), has been studied extensively in dogs with DMVD, with mixed findings. The N-terminal-prohormone of B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is a routinely used biomarker of canine cardiac dysfunction. This study compared the diagnostic utility of PTX3 with TNF-α and NT-proBNP in dogs with DMVD. Serum NT-proBNP, PTX3, and TNF-α were measured in 50 client-owned dogs diagnosed and staged according to the ACVIM stages A-D. Echocardiographic variables, radiographic vertebral heart score (VHS) and vertebral left atrial size (VLAS), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and quality of life (QoL) scores were assessed. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare PTX3, TNF-α, and NT-proBNP levels between different stages of DMVD, and the Jonckheere-Terpstra test assessed whether serum biomarker concentrations showed a significant ordered trend across progressively worsening DMVD across stages. Spearman’s correlation was used to assess the associations between biomarker levels, disease stage, QoL scores, SBP, radiographic, and echocardiographic parameters. Concentration of PTX3 and TNF-α did not differ significantly across DMVD stages, while only NT-proBNP showed significant variation between stages (p = 0.02). Jonckheere-Terpstra trend test revealed a significant ordered trend in serum NT-proBNP (p < 0.01), but not PTX3 and TNF-α across DMVD stages. NT-proBNP correlated significantly with DMVD stage, QoL score, VHS, VLAS, and echocardiographic variables including LVIDdn, LA:Ao (p < 0.01), and EF%, FS% (p = 0.02). NT-proBNP remains a reliable biomarker for diagnosis, disease monitoring, and prognosis assessment in canine DMVD. Future studies employing larger longitudinal cohorts will be essential to better elucidate the role of inflammatory markers in canine heart disease.