A promising new treatment for asthmatic cats

Asthma is a naturally occurring disease not only in humans but also in cats. In fact, cats are the only nonhuman species that can develop clinical asthma. As in humans, feline asthma is caused by breathing in an allergen that triggers a reaction called type 1 hypersensitivity. This hypersensitivity occurs when the allergen causes a cat's body to produce an antibody that attaches to cell receptors, particularly those in the lungs, causing them to become hypersensitive.

When an affected cat repeatedly comes into contact with the allergen, its cells produce histamines and serotonin that constrict the airway muscle and inhibit breathing. Eventually, the cat can become asthmatic. In moderate cases, the asthma reaction causes coughing and chest tightness, but in severe attacks, the cat can lose oxygen, become unable to breathe and can potentially die.

The traditional treatment for asthmatic cats is steroids, such as prednisone, but over the long term, these drugs increase the risk of endocrine disorders and can suppress the immune system. Dr. Laurel Gershwin at the University of California-Davis wants to find a safer alternative. Using funding from Morris Animal Foundation, she evaluated the ability of a synthetic nucleic acid called CpG to dampen the asthmatic response in cats who were allergic to Bermuda grass.

Although CpG treatment didn't completely shut off hypersensitive reactions, the results were encouraging. CpG appeared to alter immune response in the study cats, and Dr. Gershwin believes this treatment eventually could be used to alleviate feline asthma. CpG may also help to prevent the initial allergic responses in cats who are genetically predisposed to allergies, and therefore it may stop asthma from developing altogether. More research is needed, but CpG therapy may provide asthmatic cats and their owners with a more cost-effective and safer treatment in the future.