Measurement of paraoxonase and telomerase enzymes and HDL (HIGH density lipoprotein) values and research of their possible relationships with each other in blood serum of obese cats

Obesity is the increase in body fat in a way that disrupts metabolic and physiological functions. Today, obesity is seen as a serious health problem in domestic cats and is becoming increasingly common. Obesity is known to be associated with many diseases such as endocrine and metabolic disorders, hyperadrenocorticism and hypothyroidism. Paraoxonase type 1 (PON1) has anti-inflammatory properties and is a negative acute phase protein. It has been reported that diet, lifestyle, liver functions and any disease prevalence affect PON synthesis from the liver. PON1 is transported by linking to different parts of HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) in the blood and has a protective feature of HDL against oxidation. It has been reported that PON1 levels in the blood are decreased in obese cases in humans. HDL, one of the plasma lipoproteins, plays a role in transporting cholesterol back to the liver for storage, excretion or redistribution. For cats, HDL are mainly cholesterol-carrying lipoproteins. Telomerase is a reverse transcriptase enzyme that synthesizes and protects telomeres. Telomere length becomes shorter due to stress, obesity, lack of exercise, and bad eating habits. When telomerase enzyme is not found to be sufficient, telomeres cannot be elongated and thus DNA damage can occur that will result in cell cycle arrest, apoptosis or death. In this study, paraoxonase, telomerase enzymes and HDL values in blood serum of obese and non-obese cats were measured and their relationships with each other were evaluated. A total of 25 cats as obese (n = 15) and control group (n = 10) were included in the study. The body fat ratio of the cats was evaluated with the body fat measurement system, those above 30% were evaluated as obese (n = 15), those below 30% were evaluated as the control group (n = 10) and blood samples were collected. Serum paraoxonase, telomerase enzyme activities and HDL values were measured and evaluated in cats in both groups. Paraoxonase enzyme (p <0.001), telomerase enzyme (p <0.001) and HDL (p <0.008) values showed a statistically significant difference between the obese and control groups, and it was found to be lower in the obese group compared to the control group. As a result; Paraoxonase and telomerase enzymes, which are parameters of oxidative stress and are known to decrease in inflammation, were also found to be decreased in obese cats. The fact that HDL values are lower than the control group is an indicator that there are diseases that occur together with obesity.