Table 4.
Mean serum chemistry values for manatees from Puerto Rico for all samples (calves, subadults, and adults, n = 70): calves only, n = 23; subadults only, n = 6; and adults only, n = 41, with ±1 standard deviation range in parentheses. Abbreviations for parameters are detailed in the Materials and Methods section. Significant differences using p values between calves and adults are indicated with an asterisk (∗).
| Parameter | All manatee samples | Calves | Subadults | Adults | p value | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean ± SD | Range | Mean ± SD | Range | Mean ± SD | Range | Mean ± SD | Range | Calves vs. Adults | |
| Liver-associated enzymes and pigments | |||||||||
| LDH (U/L) | 425.3 ± 164.6 | (261–590) | 394.6 ± 174.1 | (220–569) | 538.2 ± 144.6 | (394–683) | 420.2 ± 159.7 | (261–580) | 0.620 |
| TOT BILI (mg/dL) | 0.2 ± 0.1 | (0.1–0.3) | 0.3 ± 0.2 | (0.1–0.4) | 0.1 ± 0.04 | (0.1–0.2) | 0.2 ± 0.1 | (0.1–0.3) | 0.009∗ |
| Muscle-associated enzymes | |||||||||
| ALT (U/L) | 15.4 ± 7.1 | (8.3–23) | 12.0 ± 6.5 | (5.5–18) | 18.5 ± 5.5 | (13–24) | 16.8 ± 7.1 | (9.7–24) | 0.011∗ |
| AST (U/L) | 11.4 ± 5.2 | (6.1–17) | 10.3 ± 4.9 | (5.4–15) | 13.5 ± 6.4 | (7.1–20) | 11.9 ± 5.5 | (6.4–17) | 0.316 |
| ALP (U/L) | 78.2 ± 20.4 | (58–99) | 86.9 ± 20.6 | (66–108) | 70.2 ± 20.7 | (49–91) | 76.2 ± 19.8 | (56–96) | 0.096 |
| CPK (U/L) | 99.8 ± 32.3 | (68–132) | 85.8 ± 24.1 | (62–110) | 119.4 ± 20.9 | (99–140) | 101.4 ± 34.9 | (67–136) | 0.136 |
| Kidney-associated compounds and products | |||||||||
| BUN (mg/dL) | 4.2 ± 2.1 | (2.1–6.3) | 4.1 ± 2.5 | (1.6–6.5) | 5.2 ± 2.2 | (3.0–7.4) | 4.1 ± 2.0 | (2.2–6.1) | 0.896 |
| CREA (mg/dL) | 1.5 ± 0.4 | (1.1–1.9) | 1.3 ± 0.4 | (0.9–1.8) | 1.5 ± 0.5 | (1.0–2.1) | 1.6 ± 0.4 | (1.3–2.0) | 0.014∗ |
| BUN:CREA | 2.1 ± 0.7 | (1.4–2.8) | 1.7 ± 0.8 | (0.9–2.4) | 2.3 ± 0.4 | (1.9–2.7) | 2.2 ± 0.7 | (1.5–2.9) | 0.078 |
| UA (mg/dL) | 0.9 ± 0.5 | (0.4–1.4) | 1.2 ± 0.4 | (0.8–1.6) | 0.8 ± 0.6 | (0.2–1.4) | 0.8 ± 0.5 | (0.3–1.3) | 0.009∗ |
| Sugars, lipids, and pancreatic-associated enzymes | |||||||||
| GLU (mg/dL) | 91.2 ± 18.5 | (73–110) | 78.5 ± 14.6 | (64–93) | 86.7 ± 21.5 | (65–108) | 97.0 ± 16.9 | (80–114) | 0.001∗ |
| TRIG (mg/dL) | 109.3 ± 25.2 | (84–135) | 110.7 ± 28.0 | (83–139) | 88.4 ± 17.5 | (71–106) | 112.4 ± 24.4 | (88–137) | 0.867 |
| CHOL (mg/dL) | 117.5 ± 25.7 | (92–143) | 138.0 ± 14.9 | (123–153) | 115 ± 19.8 | (95–135) | 116.2 ± 26.7 | (90–143) | 0.105 |
| AMY (U/L) | 599.7 ± 149.1 | (451–749) | 667.0 ± 179.3 | (488–846) | — | — | 573.5 ± 145.3 | (428–719) | 0.399 |
| Proteins | |||||||||
| TOT PROT (g/dL) | 7.0 ± 0.5 | (6.4–7.5) | 6.7 ± 0.6 | (6.1–7.3) | 6.8 ± 0.4 | (6.3–7.2) | 7.1 ± 0.4 | (6.7–7.6) | 0.004∗ |
| ALB (g/dL) | 3.9 ± 0.5 | (3.5–4.4) | 3.7 ± 0.5 | (3.2–4.3) | 3.9 ± 0.4 | (3.5–4.4) | 4.1 ± 0.4 | (3.7–4.5) | 0.012∗ |
| GLOB (g/dL) | 2.9 ± 0.4 | (2.5–3.3) | 3.0 ± 0.4 | (2.6–3.5) | 2.8 ± 0.5 | (2.3–3.3) | 2.8 ± 0.4 | (2.4–3.1) | 0.143 |
| ALB:GLOB | 1.4 ± 0.3 | (1.1–1.7) | 1.2 ± 0.3 | (0.9–1.5) | 1.5 ± 0.3 | (1.1–1.8) | 1.4 ± 0.2 | (1.2–1.7) | 0.032∗ |
| Electrolytes | |||||||||
| Na (mmol/L) | 151.0 ± 5.5 | (146–157) | 147.8 ± 5.1 | (143–153) | 151.0 ± 6.2 | (145–157) | 152.6 ± 5.0 | (148–158) | ≤0.001∗ |
| Cl− (mmol/L) | 99.6 ± 6.3 | (93–106) | 97.3 ± 6.5 | (91–104) | 99.9 ± 6.1 | (94–106) | 101.0 ± 5.9 | (95–107) | 0.036∗ |
| K (mmol/L) | 5.3 ± 0.7 | (4.6–5.9) | 4.8 ± 0.5 | (4.3–5.2) | 5.5 ± 0.5 | (5.0–5.9) | 5.5 ± 0.6 | (4.9–6.1) | ≤0.001∗ |
| PO4 (mg/dL) | 5.9 ± 1.1 | (4.8–7.0) | 6.2 ± 1.1 | (5.1–7.3) | 6.3 ± 1.3 | (5.0–7.5) | 5.7 ± 1.1 | (4.5–6.8) | 0.110 |
| Ca (mg/dL) | 9.8 ± 0.7 | (9.2–11) | 10.1 ± 0.6 | (9.6–11) | 9.5 ± 0.5 | (9.0–10) | 9.7 ± 0.7 | (9.0–10) | 0.020∗ |
| CO2 (mmol/L) | 26.7 ± 9.5 | (17–36) | 33.7 ± 4.5 | (29–38) | 23.9 ± 11.7 | (12–36) | 23.0 ± 9.3 | (14–32) | ≤0.001∗ |
| AG (mmol/L) | 27.9 ± 10.6 | (17–39) | 19.9 ± 6.5 | (13–26) | 32.4 ± 11.7 | (21–44) | 32.2 ± 9.7 | (23–42) | ≤0.001∗ |