"Gut Microbiota Profiling as a Promising Tool to Detect Equine Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)" — ties microbiota shifts to inflammatory markers including calprotectin.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has become more common among humans and awareness of its prevalence in animals, including horses, has also increased during the past few decades. Equine IBD is problematic as it decreases the performance of horses and causes diarrhea, weight loss, and pain-related behaviors. Apart from high levels of uncertainty in diagnosing IBD, it is stressful for the horse and expensive for the owner as it typically requires transportation to the horse hospital, fasting, endoscopy, and biopsy assessment. Therefore, there is a need for a non-invasive and affordable method to screen for IBD.