Wild Alaskan salmon supplementation increases 25-OHD levels in sled dogs
1 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Alaska Fairbanks 900 Yukon Drive Fairbanks, AK 99775 USA.
2 Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2140 Koyukuk Drive Fairbanks, AK 99775 USA.
3 Plants for Human Health Institute, North Carolina State University, 600 Laureate Way Kannapolis, NC 28081.
4 Alaska Gateway School District, PO Box 226, 1313.5 Alaska Highway Tok, AK 99780 USA.
Research Article
GSC Advanced Research and Reviews, 2024, 18(02), 395–401.
Article DOI: 10.30574/gscarr.2024.18.2.0036
Publication history:
Received on 20 December 2023; revised on 06 February 2024; accepted on 09 February 2024
Abstract:
Vitamin D deficiency affects canines and humans alike. Athletes are a particularly high-risk group. Further research regarding optimal intake and supplementation is needed to establish the parameters of vitamin D status in both humans and canines and to create a physiologically-relevant definition for vitamin D sufficiency. The objectives of this study were to (1) compare 25-OHD (25-hydroxy vitamin D) levels in sled dogs before and after receiving a diet supplemented with wild Alaskan salmon and (2) correlate biomarkers associated with vitamin D metabolism to 25-OHD levels in sled dogs. Plasma samples from 14 working sled dogs between 10 months and 7 years of age were collected before and after a 4-week supplementation with »0.45 kg of salmon/day. Samples were analyzed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) for parathyroid hormone and vitamin D binding protein (DBP); 25-OHD levels were measured via radioimmunoassay. 25-OHD and DBP in sled dogs significantly increased after a 4-week supplementation with salmon (P=0.0011 and 0.0367, respectively). Additional variations in 25-OHD were observed when separated by sex (P=0.0404) and age (P<0.0001). 57% of the dogs were deficient prior to the salmon supplementation and 14% at the completion of the study. Wild Alaskan salmon is one of the few food sources that provide appreciable amounts of vitamin D. A 4-week salmon supplementation in sled dogs was sufficient to improve 25-OHD concentrations in most sled dogs in this study. Confounding factors such as age and sex affect circulating 25-OHD levels.
Keywords:
Canine athlete; Vitamin D; Parathyroid hormone; Vitamin D binding protein; Circumpolar North
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Copyright © 2024 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Liscense 4.0
