Dogs, Cats May Be Heart Healthy

Dogs, Cats May Be Heart Healthy, AHA Says

By Chris Kaiser, Cardiology Editor, MedPage Today

Published: May 10, 2013

Reviewed by Robert Jasmer, MD; Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco and Dorothy Caputo, MA, BSN, RN, Nurse Planner

People who own dogs or cats may have a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, according to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association, but the AHA cautions the evidence is only suggestive.

After reviewing the literature, writing chair Glenn N. Levine, MD, a professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and colleagues found that having a dog or cat in one's life was associated with beneficial cardiovascular effects, including:

• Increased physical activity
• Favorable lipid profiles
• Lower systemic blood pressure
• Improved autonomic tone
• Diminished sympathetic responses to stress
• Improved survival after an acute coronary syndrome

The studies are by no means definitive and do not necessarily prove that owning a pet directly causes a reduction in heart disease risk, researchers emphasized.

They concluded that the data supported a possible association between pet ownership and decreased cardiovascular risk. "We saw the most robust data for dogs helping to increase their owners' exercise ability," Levine told MedPage Today.

And although randomized data on this topic are scarce, Levine and colleagues concluded that a causal link may exist between pet ownership and decreased cardiovascular risk -- again, the data being more robust for dog ownership.

The investigators noted two randomized trials in their evaluation. One of them randomized 30 people with borderline hypertension to either adopt a dog from a shelter or defer adoption.

At 2 and 5 months follow-up, the group that adopted dogs had significantly lower systolic blood pressure. When all participants had adopted a dog, the drop in BP was similar between the two groups (Abstract presented at 22nd Annual Scientific Sessions of the Society of Behavioral Medicine; March 24, 2001; Seattle, WA.).

The second study randomized 48 hypertensive stockbrokers to dog or cat adoption or no adoption. Researchers wanted to gauge the level of stress reduction. Compared with nonpet owners, the pet owners demonstrated significantly "diminished increases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and plasma renin activity when exposed to mental stress at 6 months" (Hypertension 2001; 38: 815-820).

The data on pet ownership and hyperlipidemia is sparse, but trends toward modest reductions in total cholesterol for pet owners.

Studies looking at obesity and pet ownership have been conflicting because of several factors including type of pet, different patient populations, and how much interaction there is between owner and pet, researchers said.

However, "dog walking, as opposed to pet or dog ownership, does appear to be associated with a lower incidence of obesity," they noted.

Finally, in people without cardiovascular disease, pet ownership did not appear to have an impact on survival. In contrast, dog ownership in those with established heart disease was strongly associated with decreased mortality, with the likelihood of mortality being four times greater for those who did not own dog.

Based on the evidence, the AHA recommends that pet ownership, particularly dog ownership, may be reasonable for reduction in cardiovascular disease risk (Class IIb; Level of Evidence B).

A second recommendation states that pet adoption, rescue, or purchase should not be done for the primary purpose of reducing cardiovascular disease risk risk (Class III; Level of Evidence C).

In conclusion, the authors state, "Further research is clearly needed on this important topic, including studies of risk factor modification, primary prevention, and pet acquisition as part of a strategy of secondary risk reduction."

Some red setter dudes working in Canada...

Al & Ed traveled up to Clinton Ontario to judge the Region 13 Amateur Walking Shooting Dog Championship... had a great time... the club treated us like royalty... big thank you to Spencer Ray of Creek Haven Ranch  http://www.creekhavenranch.com/index.php  

Named Champion was Bad River Frankie (Tom Vanecheck)

Runner Up was One Shot Remington (Greg Hilla)

Congratulations and thanks for a great weekend!

NEW RED SETTER NSTRA CHAMPION !!

Congratulations to Steve Witz of Grangeville Idaho and his red setter NSTRA CHAMPION Pal Holiday.  "Pal" was recently awarded his NSTRA Championship on April 6, 2013.  He is only the third Irish Setter in the history of NSTRA to achieve this difficult and prestigious award.  NSTRA dogs must be outstanding bird hunters and must work in close tandem with their owner to bring home their game.  Pal and Steve have been a great working team and their hard work has paid off.  Pal was whelped in 2008 out of King Cormac and Flushing Whip Flash Edition.  Pal is a proud product of the Purest Challenge in Sportsdom.  Thank you Steve Witz for Honoring the Purest Challenge.

Steve Witz with Pal Holiday.

Also pictured are Gary Moen and Lisa Gloss.

NSTRA Champion Pal Holiday

Breakstone Wins Keystone Classic

Red setter Ch. Breakstone has won the Keystone Amateur Classic, edging out the Ch. Richfield Silver Belle, who garnered the Runnerup spot.  "Stony" had a far-flung race with six perfectly handled finds to take the blue.  Breakstone is owned and handled by the red setter veteran Roger Boser.  

Breakstone is a product of the Purest Challenge.

Life lessons...

Not really about red setters... or, maybe it is...

Quail Habitat

New Research On Lyme Disease...

(from Science Daily)

Mar. 21, 2013 — Scientists have confirmed that the pathogen that causes Lyme Disease -- unlike any other known organism -- can exist without iron, a metal that all other life needs to make proteins and enzymes. Instead of iron, the bacteria substitute manganese to make an essential enzyme, thus eluding immune system defenses that protect the body by starving pathogens of iron.

"When we become infected with pathogens, from tuberculosis to yeast infections, the body has natural immunological responses," said Valeria Culotta, a molecular biologist at the JHU Bloomberg School of Public Health. The liver produces hepcidin, a hormone that inhibits iron from being absorbed in the gut and also prevents it from getting into the bloodstream. "We become anemic, which is one reason we feel terrible, but it effectively starves pathogens of iron they need to grow and survive," she said.To cause disease, Borrelia burgdorferi requires unusually high levels of manganese, scientists at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), and the University of Texas reported. Their study, published March 22, 2013, in TheJournal of Biological Chemistry, may explain some mysteries about why Lyme Disease is slow-growing and hard to detect and treat. The findings also open the door to search for new therapies to thwart the bacterium by targeting manganese.

Borrelia, with no need for iron,has evolved to evade that defense mechanism. In 2000, groundbreaking research on Borrelia's genome by James Posey and Frank Gherardini at the University of Georgia showed that the bacterium has no genes that code to make iron-containing proteins and typically do not accumulate any detectable iron.

Culotta's lab at JHU investigates what she called "metal-trafficking" in organisms­ -- the biochemical mechanisms that cells and pathogens such as Borrelia use to acquire and manipulate metal ions for their biological purposes.

"If Borrelia doesn't use iron, what does it use?" Culotta asked.

To find out, Culotta's lab joined forces with Mak Saito, a marine chemist at WHOI, who had developed techniques to explore how marine life uses metals. Saito was particularly intrigued because of the high incidence of Lyme Disease on Cape Cod, where WHOI is located, and because he specializes in metalloproteins, which contain iron, zinc, cobalt, and other elements often seen in vitamin supplements. The metals serve as linchpins, binding to enzymes. They help determine the enzymes' distinctive three-dimensional shapes and the specific chemical reactions they catalyze.

It's difficult to identify what metals are within proteins because typical analyses break apart proteins, often separating metal from protein. Saito used a liquid chromatography mass spectrometer to distinguish and measure separate individualBorrelia proteins according to their chemical properties and infinitesimal differences in their masses. Then he used an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer to detect and measure metals down to parts per trillion. Together, the combined analyses not only measured the amounts of metals and proteins, they showed that the metals are components of the proteins.

"The tools he has are fantastic," Culotta said. "Not too many people have this set of tools to detect metalloproteins."

The experiments revealed that instead of iron, Borrelia uses that element's next-door neighbor on the periodic chart, manganese, in certain Borrelia enzymes. These include an amino peptidase and an important antioxidant enzyme called superoxide dismutase.

Superoxide dismutase protects the pathogens against a second defense mechanism that the body throws against them. The body bombards pathogens with superoxide radicals, highly reactive molecules that cause damage within the pathogens. Superoxide dismutase is like an antioxidant that neutralizes the superoxides so that the pathogens can continue to grow.

The discoveries open new possibilities for therapies, Culotta said. "The only therapy for Lyme Disease right now are antibiotics like penicillin, which are effective if the disease is detected early enough. It works by attacking the bacteria's cell walls. But certain forms of Borrelia, such as the L-form, can be resistant because they are deficient in cell walls."

"So we'd like to find targets inside pathogenic cell that could thwart their growth," she continued. "The best targets are enzymes that the pathogens have, but people do not, so they would kill the pathogens but not harm people." Borrelia's distinctive manganese-containing enzymes such as superoxide dismutase may have such attributes.

In search of new avenues of attack, the groups are planning to expand their collaborative efforts by mapping out all the metal-binding proteins that Borellia uses and investigating biochemical mechanisms that the bacteria use to acquire manganese and directs it into essential enzymes. Knowing details of how that happens offers ways to disrupt the process and deter Lyme Disease.

The authors of the new study are J. Daphne Aguirre, Hillary Clark, Christine Vazquez, Shaina Palmere, and Culotta (JHU Bloomberg School of Public Health); Saito and Matthew McIlvin (WHOI); Denise Grab (JHS School of Medicine); Janakiram Seshu (University of Texas); and P. John Hart (University of Texas Health Science Center).Share on stumbleupon

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