Factors influencing vitamin B6 status in domestic cats: age, body condition score, and inflammation

Abstract

Abstract Limited studies are available on the vitamin B6 status in domestic cats. To this end, we evaluated glutamate-oxaloacetate transaminase activity in hemolysates with and without pyridoxal 5’-phosphate supplementation in two feline populations: a cohort of 60 domestic (sexually intact and specific pathogen-free) cats maintained under strictly controlled conditions with optimal diets (Feline Nutrition and Pet Care Center) and a cohort of 57 cats randomly selected between December 2022 to January 2023 that visited the Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital to seek care under different circumstances. We analyzed the data based on the animal's age, sex, body condition score, and diagnosis to elucidate the main factors driving vitamin B6 deficiencies in domestic cats. Based on the age and body condition scores, most cats with vitamin B6 deficiency had a low body condition score (41.7%), suggesting low food intake and/or malassimilation, as most were of advanced age (≥7 y old; 66.7%). This result is consistent with the increased energy requirements and compromised digestibility in older cats linked to a higher proportion of underweight elderly cats. When the data of vitamin B6-deficient cats were analyzed in terms of medical diagnosis, most (58.4%) had a condition associated with an increased inflammatory response, whether through an infection (feline coronavirus; 25%) or via diseases associated directly or indirectly with an inflammatory response (33.4%). Thus, our study supports that vitamin B6 supplementation may be indicated in older animals, especially those undergoing an active inflammation process.