Table 7.
Hematologic and serum chemistry analytes (marginal mean, lower 95% confidence limit − higher 95% confidence limit) from 248 blood samples of clinically healthy aged adult killer whales (Orcinus orca, 31+ years old) for which seasonal differences were detected (N = 23)
| Blood analyte | Spring | Summer | Fall | Winter | Šidák groups (P < 0.01) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hematology | |||||
| Hb (g/dL) | 15.1 (14.9‐15.3) | 15.3 (15.1‐15.5) | 15.2 (15.0‐15.4) | 15.1 (14.9‐15.3) | NSD |
| HCT (%) | 45.3 (44.7‐45.9) | 45.9 (45.3‐46.5) | 45.5 (44.9‐46.1) | 45.1 (44.5‐45.6) | W < F; Sp < S |
| RBC (106/μL) | 4.03 (3.94‐4.13) | 4.08 (3.99‐4.18) | 4.06 (3.97‐4.16) | 4.02 (3.92‐4.12) | Sp & W < S & F |
| MCV (FL) | 113.0 (111.7‐114.3) | 112.9 (111.6‐114.2) | 112.7 (111.4‐114.0) | 112.6 (111.3‐113.9) | NSD |
| Retica (%) | 1.03 (0.84‐1.23) | 0.93 (0.74‐1.12) | 0.93 (0.748‐1.12) | 1.06 (0.87‐1.25) | S & F < Sp & W |
| WBC (103/μL) | 4839.3 (4385.7‐5292.9) | 4705.7 (4253.4‐5158.1) | 4672.3 (4220.5‐5124.1) | 4875.7 (4422.7‐5328.7) | F < Sp & W; S < W |
| Abs segs (103/μL) | 4019.4 (3616.9‐4421.9) | 3895.4 (3494.0‐4296.8) | 3870.2 (3469.1‐4271.3) | 4057.7 (3655.7‐4459.7) | F < Sp & W; S < W |
| Serum chemistry | |||||
| Glucose (mg/dL) | 106.4 (102.6‐110.3) | 101.2 (97.4‐104.9) | 105.4 (101.6‐109.2) | 107.2 (103.4‐111.0) | S < Sp & F & W; F<W |
| BUN (mg/dL) | 41.3 (38.8‐43.8) | 43.4 (40.8‐45.9) | 42.6 (40.1‐45.1) | 41.5 (39.0‐44.0) | Sp & W < F < S |
| Creat (mg/dL) | 1.99 (1.88‐2.11) | 2.00 (1.89‐2.11) | 1.97 (1.86‐2.08) | 1.92 (1.80‐2.03) | W < Sp & S & F |
| Cholesterol (mg/dL) | 220.5 (200.0‐241.0) | 227.2 (206.7‐247.6) | 225.1 (204.6‐245.5) | 221.9 (201.4‐242.3) | Sp & W < S |
| Triglyceridea (mg/dL) | 155.4 (139.9‐170.9) | 159.5 (144.0‐175.0) | 146.9 (131.4‐162.3) | 153.1 (137.6‐168.7) | F < W < S |
| TProtein (g/dL) | 7.53 (7.26‐7.80) | 7.45 (7.18‐7.72) | 7.545 (7.19‐7.72) | 7.53 (7.27‐7.81) | S & F < Sp & W |
| Albumin (g/dL) | 3.88 (3.77‐4.00) | 3.86 (3.74‐3.97) | 3.86 (3.75‐4.00) | 3.90 (3.78‐4.01) | S & F < W |
| Globulin (g/dL) | 3.64 (3.42‐3.86) | 3.58 (3.36‐3.80) | 3.59 (3.37‐3.81) | 3.63 (3.41‐3.85) | NSD |
| ALP (IU/L) | 93.0 (49.3‐136.8) | 94.4 (50.8‐138.0) | 70.1 (26.7‐113.6) | 73.1 (29.4‐116.7) | F & W < Sp & S |
| ALT (IU/L) | 13.65 (10.42‐16.87) | 14.90 (11.68‐18.12) | 15.88 (12.66‐19.09) | 14.23 (11.00‐17.45) | Sp < S < F |
| AST (IU/L) | 41.06 (37.20‐44.93) | 41.67 (37.81‐45.53) | 43.39 (39.51‐47.21) | 42.63 (38.77‐46.49) | Sp & S < F; Sp < W |
| GGT (IU/L) | 3.73 (1.15‐6.31) | 4.14 (1.56‐6.71) | 5.02 (2.45‐7.59) | 4.22 (1.64‐6.79) | Sp & S & W < F |
| Phosphorusa (mg/dL) | 5.56 (5.32‐5.80) | 5.49 (5.25‐5.74) | 5.44 (5.20‐5.69) | 5.52 (5.28‐5.76) | F < Sp |
| Sodium (mEq/L) | 151.4 (150.6‐152.2) | 151.6 (150.8‐152.4) | 151.8 (151.0‐152.6) | 151.5 (150.7‐152.3) | Sp < F |
| Chloride (mEq/L) | 119.3 (118.2‐120.3) | 119.8 (118.7‐120.8) | 119.5 (118.4‐120.6) | 119.0 (118.0‐120.1) | W & Sp < S; W < F |
| CO2 (mEq/L) | 27.51 (26.59‐28.44) | 27.16 (26.24‐28.09) | 27.69 (26.77‐28.61) | 28.00 (27.08‐28.93) | S < F; Sp & S < W |
Hb, hemoglobin concentration; RBC, red blood cell count; MCV, mean corpuscular volume; RDW, red blood cell distribution width; platelet, platelet count; MPV, mean platelet volume; Retic, reticulocyte fraction; WBC, total white blood cell count; Abs segs, segmented neutrophil count; Abs lymphs, absolute lymphocyte count; Abs monos, monocyte count; Abs eos, eosinophil counts; ESR60, erythrocyte sedimentation rate at 60 minutes; BUN, blood urea nitrogen; Creat, creatinine; Tbili, total bilirubin; Tprotein, total protein; globulin, total globulins; ALP, alkaline phosphatase; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; GGT, gamma‐glutamyl transpeptidase; CK, creatinine kinase; LDH, lactate dehydrogenase; Ca, calcium; P, phosphorus; Na, sodium; K, potassium; Cl, chloride; FIB, fibrinogen.
NSD = Post hoc Šidák pairwise comparisons were not significantly different (P < 0.01).
Analytes for which a significant difference was measured between sex were controlled for by sex.