Reference ranges for serum protein fractions in domestic cats

<ns3:p>The results of laboratory analyses usually present numerical data, which by nature are abstract data unless they are compared with appropriate reference values. For this purpose, reference ranges are determined, presenting a range of ‘typical’ values for clinically healthy individuals of a given species in a given population. Analyses were conducted on material collected from 125 cats whose clinical condition was assessed as good and whose electropherograms showed no anomalies. Reference ranges were determined by the parametric method, by calculating means and standard deviation, based on which a 95% reference interval covering a range of mean +/−2 standard deviations was established. The following references ranges were obtained for cat serum proteins: albumins [g/l]: 27.46–44.65; α1-globulins [g/l]: 0.09–6.20; α2-globulins [g/l]: 4.17–11.68; α-globulins [g/l]: 7.39–14.75; β1-globulins [g/l]: 2.22–7.04; β2-globulins [g/l]: 2.45–7.13; β-globulins [g/l]: 5.67–11.40; γ-globulins [g/l]: 7.41–19.31; total protein [g/l]: 55.03–84.61. The use of tests such as native electrophoresis of serum proteins requires knowledge of reference values – reference ranges, which can be obtained by testing a sufficiently large group of clinically healthy animals. These ranges may differ in individuals of different breeds or populations. They may also depend on sex and age.</ns3:p>